Imperva, the web security specialist, has reported that the tool released by the Anonymous Hacker Group for would-be Wikileaks protesters has been downloaded over 40,000 times, with the majority of downloads occurring in the US.
The company said there were three versions of the denial of service tool that members have been able to use:
- Manual
- Server controlled
- Javascript version with no download
Amichai Schulman, chief technology officer at Imperva, said, "The tool was originally developed as an open-source network stress-testing tool. It was recently tweaked to include a central command-and-control module.
"Operation Payback's ability to challenge serious sites and do that simultaneously is very much coupled to the introduction of the new version with its [command-and-control] capabilities.
"My speculation is that due to the substantial increase in downloads, it is highly likely this is no longer just a social movement, but also a technical movement like a botnet."
The top 10 countries for downloads of the tool are:
| Country |
Downloads |
|---|---|
| United States | 9,779 |
| United Kingdom | 3,185 |
| Germany | 1,963 |
| Netherlands | 1,680 |
| Canada | 1,488 |
| France | 1,468 |
| Spain | 1,364 |
| Poland | 1,309 |
| Russia | 1,243 |
| Australia | 1,076 |
