Technology | 2009.11.18
Two held over Zeus trojan virus that steals data
Police arrest two suspected hackers over virus that has infected tens of thousands of computers around the world
Two suspected hackers have been arrested by police investigating a "trojan" computer virus that gathers confidential details from individuals and is believed to have infected tens of thousands of computers around the world.
The Metropolitan police said that once the ZeuS or Zbot trojan was installed in an affected computer, it recorded users\' bank details and passwords, credit card numbers and other information such as passwords for social networking sites.
Officers at the Metropolitan police\'s e-crime unit arrested the man and woman, both aged 20, in Manchester on 3 November. The pair have been released on bail while police investigate further.
Detective Superintendent Charlie McMurdie, who heads the unit, said the suspects were the first people in Europe to be arrested over the scam.
"This is known internationally as being a very significant malicious computer programme or malware," she said. "It is used for infecting or accessing personal information and in this instance we have 10,000 computers worldwide that have been infected."
Criminals are collecting millions of lines of data from infected computers, with more than 200,000 lines of data harvested every day, she said.
"Obviously the amount of financial harm that could be caused by using that data is huge if fast and timely action had not been taken."
The investigation is now focused on a wider international network of criminals who police believe are attempting to profit from the information.
The virus has appeared in several guises, including a false Facebook page that encouraged users to download a software update. An network of crime has grown up around the scam, with the accounts of businesses and individuals being secretly raided around the world.
The money is then laundered through complex banking networks using the accounts of complicit "money mules" to receive and withdraw the money.
McMurdie said the virus posed a "sizeable threat" to the safe use of the internet. She said: "They were very significant arrests and we have got extensive ongoing investigations as a result with our international partners."
Her colleague Detective Inspector Colin Wetherill said: "The Zeus trojan is a piece of malware used increasingly by criminals to obtain huge quantities of sensitive information from thousands of compromised computers around the world.
"The arrests represent a considerable breakthrough in our increasing efforts to combat online criminality."
Computer experts have warned that the Zeus trojan can circumvent the most sophisticated anti-virus software. But computer users can reduce the risk by installing up-to-date anti-spyware software, updating programmes and being secure on the web by disconnecting from the internet when it is not in use.
Police also advised users to be careful when opening attachments or following links on emails and on websites, and investigate new, unknown software before downloading, while ensuring they kept passwords robust and secret.
For more information, please visit
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/nov/18/zeus-zbot-trojan-virus
