Botnet (Computer network)

This page is about the network construct botnet. For the term commonly seen on /g/ and /tech/, see Botnet.

A botnet is a collection of bots that have been networked together to coordinate their functions. They are generally controlled by a third party to execute an attack such as a DDOS or spam.

A botnet can be benign, such as IRC channel bots. It an also be malicious in nature, used for DDOSing or other attacks. The installation of the botnet can likewise be either with the owners knowledge, without the owner's knowledge (See: Botnet), or by an attacker who installs it without knowledge on a compromised computer.

A common bot used to set up botnets on IRC is eggdrop.