What is Zeus Malware?

Zeus malware is a type of Trojan malware that carries invasive code affecting Microsoft Windows, Symbian, BlackBerry and Android. The tool has been used by hackers to conduct a whole slew of malicious and unlawful activities, amongst them stealing financial data from the users’ systems. Drive-by downloads and phishing attempts are the means by which Zeus is propagated. 

The detection of Zeus malware in a system is challenging, even with the most recent antivirus and other security measures, due to its use of stealth technology.

What Does Zeus Malware Do To Computers?

For an in-depth understanding of what is Zeus Malware, it is important to understand what it does to the system that it infects. This computer virus can do a number of nasty things once it infects a computer, but it really has two major pieces of functionality.

• It first creates a botnet, a network of compromised machines that are secretly controlled by a command and control server under the control of the malware owner. A botnet provides the owner with the possibility to gather huge amounts of information or to perform large-scale attacks.
• Zeus is also a financial service Trojan that steals banking credentials from the machines it infects. It does this through website monitoring and keylogging, wherein the malware recognizes when the user is on a banking website and records the keystrokes used to log in. This means that the Trojan can bypass the security of these websites since the keystrokes required for logging in are recorded as the user types them.

Other variants of it also infect mobile devices in their attempt to try and get around the two-factor authentication that is quickly gaining popularity in the financial world.

Initially, this Trojan affected only computers running versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system; newly released variants of the malware, however, have been found on Symbian, BlackBerry, and Android mobile devices.

How Can Zeus Malware Be Detected?

One reason the Zeus virus is effective is that it is relatively difficult to tell whether or not your device has been infected. There are, however, a few indicative signs that may signal dealing with malware.

• Your device slows down all of a sudden: Operating speed can considerably fall when malware is at work behind the scenes.
• You find unusual banking activity: If on the same computer you regularly access an online banking portal, and some strange transactions are being made with your account, then that could be a sign of dealing with a Zeus virus.
• A program you have never seen before starts up on your system: On the other hand, if you do not recall downloading something that appears to be running on your computer, this is another pretty good indication of malware. If it’s constantly taking a lot of CPU cycles, it’s even more true.
• Your device is overheating: Since the malware may be running in high activity during your use of the device, the hardware may overheat. This could raise a red flag if it does so suddenly. 

Who Does The Zeus Malware Target?

After learning what is Zeus Malware, let’s move towards understanding what it targets. Zeus is designed to steal banking credentials, enabling attackers to siphon money from various individual accounts and organizations. Attackers controlling a particular botnet may target businesses, and the malware is designed to run on servers, and Windows workstations.

It has expanded its target systems to include Android devices in addition to its Windows-only trojan, and governments in addition to the businesses and individuals originally targeted. The command-and-control component in Zeus provides an attacker with access to the data on the local machine; thus, organizations stand to lose trade secrets and proprietary information if any of their workstations are compromised with malware serving Zeus.

The malware and its botnet have already stolen data from some noted government agencies and private businesses. Attackers have Zeus to steal data from NASA, the US Department of Transportation (DOT), Bank of America, Amazon, Oracle, ABC, and Cisco.

The Unanticipated FBI Crackdown

GameOver Zeus was once one of the most notorious online criminal operations, infecting hundreds of thousands of computers worldwide and creating a botnet that at its peak spanned more than a million machines. But how did it get taken down?

It started in June 2012 when the FBI’s Pittsburgh office happened upon a small business that had been victimized by GameOver Zeus. The FBI, at the time, was playing catch-up with the scope of the problem. It eventually joined forces with security firms and individual researchers, growing to a team of roughly ten experts by the end of the year.

Putting their minds together and already having an understanding of what is Zeus Malware, they realized that instead of merely targeting the criminals behind the botnet, they could actually aim at taking down the botnet itself. In any case, it would take them more than a year to plan the whole operation and put it into action. They wanted to hijack the botnet silently without the criminals knowing it, so that no evidence destruction or further damage could be done.

Knowing the facets of what is Zeus Malware, the FBI launched its operation on May 30, 2013; it infiltrated the botnet to redirect its network of infected computers to servers controlled by the FBI and their partners. Internet service providers also intervened in an attempt to hand control of the network’s proxy nodes back to the investigators. This effectively centralized the botnet under the command of the FBI.

Evgeniy Bogachev, aka Slavik-the ringleader of GameOver Zeus-apparently realized that within the hour the operation was on, and made an attempt to wrest back control. But two days later, the FBI was announcing it had seized the botnet, while offering a $3 million bounty for Bogachev-who is still at large.

At the time of the takeover, GameOver Zeus controlled approximately 300,000 infected computers. Through the efforts of the FBI and security teams over a period of one year, they were able to whittle that number down to a mere 30,000. Dubbed “Operation Tovar,” the mission was considered a success.

How To Prevent Zeus Malware Attack?

Similar to most of the threats on the internet, the best way to avoid a Zeus malware attack is by a multi-prong approach. You cannot merely assume that an anti-malware tool alone will work. First, keep the software updated on each machine your company monitors and ensure that the software is running all the time.

The human factor is another crucial component of protection against any kind of malware, ransomware, or other exploit. Train all of your personnel about how to recognize phishing attacks and spam; implement a reporting mechanism whereby people can report their suspicions of any malicious activity. At the same time, you should carry out a well-structured security policy combined with unified endpoint management of corporate devices.

Some good practices you can do to prevent attack from Zeus in the future are listed below: 

• Good cyber hygiene is the best possible method of avoiding a breach. Update security software, browsers, and firewalls on a regular basis. 
• Avoid clicking any links in suspected phishing emails. 
• Use antivirus from a trusted source and update virus definitions once in a month.
• Keep up with new developments in security news, and watch out for new variants of old threats.
• Train your whole team-and not just your IT staff-in these best practices.

Conclusion

The Zeus botnet is considered one of the most infamous botnets; it was designed for stealing sensitive information such as banking credentials, usernames and passwords from infected computers. 

It was first identified in 2007, and since then, it has emerged as one of the most prevalent malware families. For instance, more than one million computers have been compromised worldwide by 2011. With such massive cyber threats, there is an increasing demand for cybersecurity experts.

Edureka’s Certified Ethical Hacking Course (CEH) is an ideal starting point to get into the world of cybersecurity. In this course, you will be trained to test an organization’s security by focusing on the vulnerabilities of its network and systems and thereby preventing unauthorized access. It is one of the most extensive ethical hacking courses today.

FAQs

What does Zeus malware do?

To know what Zeus Malware does, one must first understand what is Zeus Malware. Zeus malware allows hackers to secretly collect vast amounts of data from infected devices and can even use those devices to launch large-scale cyber attacks. It works by monitoring websites and recording keystrokes.

How does the Zeus virus spread?

Once you understand what is Zeus Malware, you will know that Zeus typically spreads through phishing emails, where a malicious link or attachment prompts the user to download the malware once opened or executed.

Can Zeus infect iOS?

While it’s rare, a version of the Zeus Trojan, called Zbot, can infect iOS devices, turning them into part of a botnet. However, infections on iOS are uncommon.

What is Zeus in cybersecurity?

Zeus is a well-known botnet that steals sensitive data, such as banking login information, from infected computers. It’s considered one of the most dangerous and widespread threats in cybersecurity.