Citadel banking Trojan evolving through 'open source' development
Citadel, a computer Trojan that targets online banking users, is evolving and spreading rapidly because its creators have adopted an "open source" development model, according to researchers from cyberthreat management firm Seculert.
The new piece of malware is based on ZeuS, one of the oldest and most popular online banking Trojans. ZeuS was abandoned by its creator in late 2010 and its source code leaked online a few months later.
Since its public release, the ZeuS source code has served as base for the development other Trojans, including Ice IX and now Citadel. "Seculert's Research Lab discovered the first indication of a Citadel botnet on December 17th, 2011," the security company claimed. "The level of adoption and development of Citadel is rapidly growing."
