Botnet

These are networks usually consisting of several thousand devices linked with each other after being infected with malware. Illegal botnet operators usually install bots without a device owner’s knowledge on the unit to abuse its resources for their purposes, for instance distributed DDoS attacks, sending out spam mails or mining crypto currencies. Most bots can be monitored via a communication channel by a bot net operator and can receive commands.

See also: Distributed denial of service (DDoS), Cryptocurrency, Malware