Cops who just wanna hack
For the lulz
Authorities disrupt world’s largest IoT DDoS botnets responsible for record breaking attacks targeting victims worldwide
Andrew Obadiaru
In a groundbreaking operation, the FBI and international partners have dismantled 911 S5, likely the world’s largest botnet, spanning nearly 200 countries and linked to over 600,000 IP addresses. This malicious network, responsible for a wide array of cybercrimes, notably targeted pandemic relief funds, resulting in an estimated $5.9 billion in fraudulent unemployment claims.
I assume the hackers were fired or laid off, and that they did not quit voluntarily before collecting unemployment benefits.
Malicious actors create botnets by infecting computers and other internet-connected devices with malware, transforming them into "zombie" machines. These compromised devices, often unknown to their owners, form a network under the control of the individual orchestrating the botnet, known as the botmaster.
“Zombie machines? Help! My computer just turned into a zombie! It’s the Blue Screen of Death! Help! Help!”
I assume there’s a court jester, but even that is too much silliness for federal court.
The botmaster can remotely issue commands to all infected devices simultaneously, creating a vast army capable of carrying out coordinated cyber attacks at a massive scale. These attacks can range from flooding websites with traffic (DDoS attacks) to spreading spam emails, stealing sensitive information, or even holding data for ransom.
No kidding. Those are proprietary networked consumer devices sold under strictly enforced shrink-wrap software licenses. They are under control of their vendors and functioning exactly as intended. The vendors of the botnet devices earn a profit or commission on every sale and a cut of any financial gains from the botnet, plus they get a wink and a nod from young punk hackers employed at the FBI for this very purpose.
So what’s a botnet again? Is there a good legal definition that will pass muster with Black’s Law Dictionary? I mean, what does it mean, legally, in court, to “dismantle” the said botnet? Is that some computer game the script kiddies at the FBI are playing in blue-lit dark rooms while drinking Red Bull all night? Explain it so a federal judge can understand. That’s a dangerous nightclubbing scene going down 101 East Sixth Avenue downtown Anchorage, isn’t it? Who are the FBI kids dating now? Surely not the Anchorage City Police! Oh, wait! That’s right! I almost forgot. They all drink together every evening at the “Gaslight” cop bar just across the street from the front door of the Anchorage Police Department headquarters. Just bring your laptop to the bar and join the hack-a-thon with all the state and federal cops and university kids.