Dogged Russia-based botnet dismantled after 23-year run
Sality’s peer-to-peer infrastructure allowed it to evade system-wide disruption efforts for an exceptionally long period. Authorities and cybersecurity experts finally brought it down.
Sality’s peer-to-peer infrastructure allowed it to evade system-wide disruption efforts for an exceptionally long period. Authorities and cybersecurity experts finally brought it down.
Multiple firms have observed active exploitation of the FortiSandbox defects, and warn that the attacks originate from multiple sources, not a single campaign.
Officials said they dismantled nine organized crime groups and removed more than 27,000 URLs hosting live sports and other copyrighted media during a seven-month operation.
Operation PowerOFF’s latest globally coordinated action identified more than 75,000 alleged cybercriminals. Officials warned each of them to stop jamming up traffic.
The botnet, which compromised routers and IoT devices in 163 countries, claimed about 369,000 victims and $5.8 million from its cybercriminal customers, officials said.
Officials took down three U.S.-registered domains that distributed copyrighted content and received tens of millions of visits a year.
The campaign traces back at least to early 2022, coinciding with the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Russian hackers aren’t just targeting Ukraine — they also appear to be going after their defense contractors in other countries, new ESET research surmises.
Authorities arrested Kosovo citizen Liridon Masurica in late 2024. He faces six charges that could keep him behind bars for 55 years.
Researchers discovered a new ransomware gang that appears to be in the early stages of their extortion campaigns.