Withdos

Withdos is a type of denial-of-service attack that targets the Windows operating system. It works by overwhelming the target system's resources, typically the CPU, by causing it to enter a state of high resource consumption. This is achieved by exploiting a vulnerability in the Windows Task Manager, which allows an attacker to create a large number of processes or threads.

The attack is named after the Windows DOS (Disk Operating System) command, as it effectively "freezes" the target system, making it unresponsive to user input. Withdos attacks can be executed remotely and do not require any user interaction on the target system. They can be mitigated by applying security patches from Microsoft, which close the vulnerability exploited by the attack.

Withdos attacks are a form of resource exhaustion attack, where the goal is to make a machine or network resource unavailable to its intended users. They are often used in conjunction with other types of attacks, such as distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, to amplify their impact.

The first documented Withdos attack occurred in 2009, and since then, several variants have been discovered. Withdos attacks have been used in targeted attacks against specific organizations, as well as in large-scale cyber attacks against critical infrastructure.