The
master boot record (MBR) consists of executable code that's stored in the first sector (sector 0) of a hard disk drive and launches the operating system's boot loader.
A successful Seftad attack can encrypt not only the user's photos and video but also the
master boot record (MBR).
and South Korean military systems, identify and remove confidential files, and, when necessary, destroy the compromised systems through a
master boot record (MBR) attack.
The 'Shamoon' malware set about wiping parts of the
master boot record (MBR) on the hard drive of any Windows system it could reach -- a technique designed to cause chaos on target networks.
"It is a destructive malware that corrupts files on a compromised computer and overwrites the MBR (
Master Boot Record) in an effort to render a computer unusable," Symantec says in a blog posting about the virus, which it called W32.Disttrack.
<p>The infiltration does not posses a degree of sophistication that would encrypt the data on the disk, instead it was designed to corrupt the MBR (
Master Boot Record) of physical disk drives.
Some 5,000 users, mostly in Europe, have reportedly been affected by the malicious program, which is a rootkit and tries to overwrite the
Master Boot Record (MBR) of the computer, during the last month.
On that day, the virus would overwrite the hard disk or change the
master boot record of infected hosts.
* Encrypting the
master boot record can make coexisting with backup-and-recovery programs difficult.
By operating on the disk sector level, the program backs up everything-system files,
master boot record (MBA), partition tables and all user data-with no regard to their content or structure.