Pixalate, the enterprise analytics and security platform, is issuing a cybersecurity threat advisory about the discovery of Xindi botnet and has released a report announcing its discovery of Xindi.
Xindi is a Windows-based botnet developed by fraudsters to exploit a critical vulnerability (the Amnesia Bug) in the Internet advertising protocol (Open RTB v2.3) by turning enterprise and university networks into botnets that launch attacks on advertising exchanges.
It is the first botnet of its kind to attack and exploit the OpenRTB protocol to gain profit from programmatic advertising. It has affected 6-8 million reputable network machines in more than 5,000+ reputable organization, including more than 10% of Fortune 500 organizations, 1,500 university networks, and more than 200 financial and government organizations. Xindi is costing advertisers an estimated $246 million per month and will cost advertisers an estimated $3 billion by 2016.
Xindi uses hacking strategies like drive-by downloads, malware and phishing attacks, or by using social engineering tactics. Once installed, it begins overwriting system configuration settings, such as the default search engine and the host file contents, to corrupt a machine. Hackers have been using various deceiving techniques to make money from advertising fraud. Xindi, however, marks a paradigm shift in how the world of digital advertising is now directly impacted by cyber-security breaches.
Pixalate is releasing their advisory for the chief information security officers (CISOs) of enterprises and universities, providing them with details about how Xindi botnet operates and the measures they can take to restrict this botnet.
