Recent e-mail worms have overloaded older ethernet networks on campus, slowing Internet access and frustrating students living in residence halls.
Variants of Mydoom and similar e-mail worms have been causing a lot of redundant computer activity over the networks since January, said John Babb, associate vice provost of ASU Information Technology.
The "denial-of-service" attacks are difficult to identify because they leave no detectable signature.
"Denial-of-service is just excessive, normal traffic," Babb said. "The core routers were not able to keep up with traffic blasted at us."
Rebecca Viles, senior tech support analyst for Center Complex, said she has received complaints from residents unable to connect to the Internet.
Resnet, Internet in residence halls, is especially vulnerable to problems because students bring personal computers, which often introduce malicious software.
IT is in the ongoing process of upgrading aging campus networks to combat slowdowns, Babb said. Most networks have been upgraded already, but Resnet and a few others remain the same.
Resnet's router to the Internet is outdated and easy to overload, Babb said. It will be replaced over spring break.
Denial-of-service attacks may still occur after the upgrades, but Babb said the faster equipment would absorb the extra activity on the network.
Undeclared freshman and Hayden Hall resident Bekka Niebur said her slow connection is irritating.
"I just get really frustrated and get off the computer, and I don't get a lot of my work done," she said.
Babb said students should start to see improvements soon.
In the future, ASU will utilize a Patch Management System to scan wireless and residence hall computer connections to the network before worms have a chance to infect the whole network, Babb said.
"Behavior detection" will look for unusual patterns in computer activity rather than specific worms' signatures.
"It's probably going to be the answer to how we deal with viruses or worms because we don't have to wait for anti-virus software to block them," Babb said.
Viles said students can protect themselves by using firewalls and virus scanners while removing unnecessary programs like unused software, but said there are no guarantees of safety.
Another Hayden Hall resident, pre-business freshman Matt Linden, has installed firewall and virus software. His connection gives him trouble, though.
"The Internet runs slow, especially during the middle of the day," Linden said. "It's really frustrating and it makes me want to scream."
Reach the reporter at nicole.saidi@asu.edu.
