The cyber black market is now more profitable than the illegal drug trade,
with a wide range of cyber criminals setting up virtual storefronts on the web to
buy and sell data records and malware. This market has evolved from a varied
landscape of discrete, ad hoc individuals into a network of highly organized
groups, often connected with traditional crime groups – such as drug cartels,
mafias, terrorist cells, and nation-states. It resembles a traditional market, in the
sense that participants communicate through various channels, place their orders,
and get products, and its evolution mirrors the normal evolution of markets with
both innovation and growth. As well as “goods”, criminal services are available for purchase. These
tools, sold on the black market as traditional software or leased like any other
managed service, can help enable the most unskilled hackers to launch fairly
elaborate and advanced attacks. Transactions in the cyber black markets are often
conducted using digital currencies such as Bitcoin, Pecunix, AlertPay, PPcoin,
Litecoin and Feathercoin. Many criminal sites are starting to accept only digital
crypto currencies due to their anonymity and security characteristics.
There is also an element of “honor among thieves”. Many parts of the cyber
black market are policed, and have rules like a constitution, so those who scam
others are regularly banned or otherwise pushed off the market. In response to
that, law enforcement efforts are improving as cyber criminals go after bigger
targets and attracting more attention. Security companies are also developing
more proactive approaches to dealing with cyber criminals, using new techniques
to identify potential threats and block them before an attack is carried out.
【題組】47. What is not true about the similarity between cyber black market and
traditional market?
(A) They are both run by crime groups.
(B) The deals are done in different channels.
(C) People would first place orders and then get products.
(D) They develop from small scale to larger one.