
56 ◾ Malicious Bots
Although some may question whether an “offer” such as this one could be legiti-
mate, there is no reason to believe that it was not. Most attackers have too much to
lose—in terms of their reputation for doing business—to scam each other in such
circumstances. Of course, it does happen, but far less often than the huge volume
of actual transactions that go forward in the underground.
On the contrary, this “ad” is really a representation of just how wide-open and
“relaxed” the botnet underground is at this point in time. For an attacker to offer
such a service for free shows a maturation of the criminal “business model.”
4.8.4 ...