Hunting Linux/Moose 2.0: Assessing the Illicit Online Market of Social Media Fraud

Social media fraud (SMF) is the generation of fake likes, follows and views on online social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. It is used by individuals who wish to improve their visibility on online social networks. These individuals rarely have the skills and the know-how to do social media fraud; they instead rely on offenders who offer social media fraud services online. Known as botmasters, these offenders have managed to take over tens if not hundreds of thousands of computers through various malware infection schemes. This army of infected computers can be used to like, follow or view content on social media networks. The aim of this project is to provide a deeper understanding of the markets where social media fraud services are bought and sold. Our approach, which combines computer sciences and social sciences, will enable us to describe the operations of a botmaster involved in this type of fraud and to assess the demand and supply for this online illicit market.

Faculty Supervisor:

David Décary-Hétu

Student:

Partner:

GoSecure Inc

Discipline:

Computer science

Sector:

Administrative and support, waste management and remediation services

University:

Université de Montréal

Program: