14 DAY TRIAL // Citadel is the most sophisticated tool that can currently be purchased by fraudsters on the open market. However, that’s about to change in the upcoming period, the Trojan’s developers fearing that their public activities might land them behind bars.
According to the RSA, a spokesperson for the Citadel development team has recently announced that the software will be taken off the open market. That means that only current customers, or those who can find someone to vouch for them, will be able to purchase new releases.
Experts believe that the announcement might be a marketing strategy designed to make potential customers purchase Citadel as soon as possible. However, the more plausible version is that they simply fear that too much attention is not good for business.
First of all, a Trojan that is widespread and easily accessible can be analyzed by researchers, making its evasion mechanisms less effective.
On the other hand, the fact that anyone can use the malware to commit financial crimes could make it easier for law enforcement to track down cybercriminals and maybe even the authors of the malicious element.
Authorities have arrested a large number of individuals that used Trojans to steal from bank accounts, but they’ve rarely tracked down those who actually developed the malware.
Citadel’s team has taken a different approach and even created a friendly customer relationship management system which allows clients to come up with improvement ideas.
However, as the popularity of a Trojan increases, so do the attempts of law enforcement and security firms to bring it down. While developers aren’t directly causing any damage, they are considered an accessory to the crimes committed by the botmasters.
The decision to go even deeper underground may be a precaution measure that’s meant to ensure that they will forever remain anonymous, such as the ones who programmed ZeuS, SpyEye or Ice IX.