The MyDoom.B computer worm launched its attack on Microsoft on Tuesday, but the software giant’s Web site remained accessible.
Since last week Microsoft has known that the MyDoom.B worm had targeted its Web site for what is a called a denial-of-service attack. A close cousin of the worm, known as MyDoom, brought down the site of SCO Group Inc., a Utah-based software company, on Sunday.
In a denial-of-service attack, numerous computers simultaneously try to access a Web site, eventually causing it to fail.
Microsoft wasn’t saying how its Web site survived MyDoom.B. But the company did say that it had a backup for anyone having difficulty reaching www.microsoft.com. Microsoft had set up https://information .microsoft.com, a clone of its regular Web site.
Meanwhile, the Federal Trade Commission is working with authorities in 26 other countries to limit hackers’ access to computer networks. People mailing spam typically go through one or more independent computer systems to hide their identity.
The agency and its counterparts abroad are contacting vulnerable networks around the world, offering information to make on making their systems more secure.
