Skip to main content

The demand for hacking tools and malware is greater than the current supply

A 34-page report published by Positive Technologies reveals a high demand for malware creation on the dark web: Three times greater than the current supply. The report is based on 25 Russian and English-based dark web sites with around 3 million registered individuals to reveal the most-popular malware in use today, the cost of attack services, and more.

“Such utilities are becoming increasingly available as a result of partner programs, malware leasing, and as-a-service distribution models,” the firm states. “This trend is not only causing a rise in the number of cyber-incidents, but seriously hindering investigative efforts to properly attribute attacks.”

Recommended Videos

What is the dark web? Of all the internet pages available on the web, only four percent are indexed in search engines. The remaining “hidden” pages fall into the “deep web” consisting of private forums, databases and other resources both legal and illegal. It’s this illegal portion that falls under the dark web banner: A place you should never, ever visit without full protection.

On the dark web you’ll find the “shadow market,” a place where illegal products and services are sold. Most of what you’ll find on this market can be split into four categories: Malware (ransomware, miners), Exploits (known, zero-day), Data (credit cards, banking), and Access (user credentials).

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Currently, the most widely used malware is the cryptominer, which seizes PCs and mines digital coins for hackers. In second place are hacking utilities followed by botnet malware, Remote Access Trojans, and ransomware. The remaining 55 percent deals with creation and distribution.

On the pricing front, the most expensive “service” can cost more than $4,500 for attacking an organization, depending on the difficulty. Malware designed for attacking ATM machines has a starting cost of $1,500 while compromising a website to gain full control can cost a mere $150. But that’s just a sample: Any type of attack is possible if you have the funds, such as a DDoS attack for around $50 per day.

The average cost of malware in dollars. Image used with permission by copyright holder

According to the report, the most requested hack-for-hire request is finding vulnerabilities followed by accessing email accounts. Social network account and email hacks are at the top of the commonly offered services list, as these attacks are supposedly the easiest to perform.

The report also notes the prison time you’ll receive for hacks and attacks. For instance, hacking the accounts of U.S. government officials will land you a five-year prison sentence while conducting a DDoS attack requires a minimum of one year in prison. If you want a long-term stay, managing a shadow service will place you behind bars for 35 years.

Positive Technologies ultimately points out that the fight against cybercriminals is only getting harder. Just in the first quarter of 2018 alone, the number of hacker-related incidents was up 32 percent versus the same quarter in 2017. The fact that the demand for new hacking tools is greater than the current supply is alarming enough.

A good way to protect yourself is to routinely change passwords, use two-factor authentication, biometrics, and/or use physical USB-based security keys.

Kevin Parrish
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Kevin started taking PCs apart in the 90s when Quake was on the way and his PC lacked the required components. Since then…
This Alienware gaming PC with RTX 4090 is almost $1,000 off
Alienware Aurora R16 sitting on a coffee table.

Is your current gaming PC on its last legs? If you need an upgrade, check out Dell's offer for the Alienware Aurora R16 gaming desktop with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 graphics card. From its original price of $4,695, the machine is down to $3,700. It's still pretty expensive, but you won't always get the chance to buy such a powerful gaming PC with a nearly $1,000 discount. However, if you want to pocket the savings of $995, you're going to have to be quick with your purchase as there's no telling when this bargain expires.

Why you should buy the Alienware Aurora R16 gaming desktop
The Alienware Aurora R16, which received a rating of four out of five stars in our review, sits on top of our list of the best gaming PCs. Compared to the Alienware Aurora R15, this latest version of the gaming desktop is around half the size without compromising power or thermals, with upgraded internals for even better performance. In addition to the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 graphics card, this configuration of the Alienware Aurora R16 features the 14th-generation Intel Core i9 processor and 64GB of RAM, which our guide on how to buy a gaming desktop says would be useful for those who will use their machine for other purposes beyond gaming, such as editing videos.

Read more
Apple is surveying its own employees about smart glasses idea
Apple Fifth Avenue Store Apple Logo

Apple is asking its employees how they feel about smart glasses as the tech giant considers entering the fledgling market, according to the latest report from the prominent Apple tipster Mark Gurman.

Citing people with knowledge of the matter, Gurman said on Monday that Apple has started gathering feedback from employees in focus groups organized by the company’s Product Systems Quality team, which is part of Apple's hardware engineering division.

Read more
The humble bumblebee just messed things up for Meta
A close-up of a bee.

The humble bumblebee has played a part in obstructing an ambitious construction project by Meta, according to a Financial Times (FT) report.

The Mark Zuckerberg-led tech giant has apparently had to abandon a plan to build a nuclear-powered AI data center partly because a rare bee species has been found on the land where the facility would have been built.

Read more