What it costs to host a malware site

Brian Krebs reports on "bulletproof hosting" providers that offer malware/spyware creeps, spammers, rip-off artists and other Mos Eisley cantina-dwellers a place to park a website where takedown notices, search warrants, and the law can't reach.

Of course, just how insulated this particular provider's services are and how much illicit activity you can get away with while using them depends largely on how much you're willing to shell out each month. For example, an entry level "default bulletproof server" allows customers to host things like rogue online pharmacies, replica, gambling, and MP3 sites for $270 per month. But this service level bars customers from hosting nastier content, such as malware, spyware, adware, exploits, viruses, and phishing sites.

Upgrade to the "Super BulletProof Virtual Dedicated Servers in China" — and pay almost $500 a month — and the only activities that are prohibited are sending spam and hosting any type of porn.

The provider pictured here also upsells potential customers by offering a variety of handy add-on services. For extra coin each month, one can rent a bulletproof server with a license for XRumer, a black hat search engine manipulation tool that automates the registration of new Web forum accounts and the spamming of links on those forums, all in a bid to boost the search engine rankings of the spamvertized site. If you operate a blog and have had to deal with what appear to be automated, link-filled comments, chances are good that XRumer was involved in some way.

Body Armor for Bad Web Sites