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Finding Computer Bad Guys: Imagine you’re in a big city. You can tell who the tourists are because they always look up at the tall buildings, right? Well, just like those tourists, there are “bad guys” on computers who do things that make them easy to spot.
How to Catch a Computer Tourist
Just like we spot tourists looking at big buildings, computer experts can see when someone is trying to sneak into a computer. These sneaky moves can mean that someone is trying to steal information.
Last month, a group called Cisco Talos said that more bad guys are trying to sneak into computer systems. But, if we can spot these “tourists” early, we can stop them.
Think about it like this: If someone was sneaking around your house, how fast could you catch them?
Computer Maps for Bad Guys
When people visit a new city, they use maps to find their way. In the computer world, bad guys try to find their way around too. A company called Thinkst has made special alarms, called “canaries,” that let us know when someone is sneaking around.
These “canaries” are like invisible tripwires. When a bad guy trips them, they send out a warning. Thinkst has many types of these alarms, like ones that tell you if someone is looking at certain websites or opening certain files.
The “Don’t Touch” Sign for Computers
Haroon Meer, who started Thinkst, says that these canaries are like “wet paint” signs. Just like some people touch wet paint even when the sign tells them not to, bad guys can’t help but touch these computer tripwires.
Also, these alarms are good for testing our own computer defenses. Some experts try to sneak into systems on purpose to find weak spots. These alarms can catch them too.
Thinkst also has a special tool with even more alarms. And the best part? They made it easy to use!
Free Canaries for Everyone!
Thinkst is giving away some of their alarms for free. You can visit canarytokens.org and pick the ones you like. There are many types:
- Alarms for when someone looks at certain websites.
- Alarms for when someone uses a special key.
- Alarms for when someone opens certain files.
And more!
Haroon from Thinkst says that these alarms are very good at catching sneaky people. And they’re good for testing our own computer guards too.
In the end, it’s like a game of hide-and-seek. The bad guys try to sneak around, but with the right tools, we can catch them quickly. Just like we can spot a tourist in a big city, we can spot a sneaky person in the computer world!