A botnet consists of a number of compromised machines that are all controlled by an evil botmaster [39, 146]. a. Most botnets are controlled using the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) protocol. What is IRC...

A botnet consists of a number of compromised machines that are all controlled by an evil botmaster [39, 146].

a. Most botnets are controlled using the Internet Relay Chat (IRC) protocol. What is IRC and why is it particularly useful for controlling a botnet?

b. Why might a covert channel be useful for controlling a botnet?

c. Design a covert channel that could provide a reasonable means for a botmaster to control a botnet.