US law enforcement authorities announced Wednesday the takedown of an international hacking network known as Qakbot, which has infected more than 700,000 computers worldwide and cost victims millions of dollars in ransoms.
The international operation to neutralize the network’s infrastructure was carried out in cooperation with French, British, German, Dutch, Romanian and Latvian law enforcement and judicial authorities, US federal prosecutor Martin Estrada said at a press conference in Los Angeles, noting that $8.6 million in cryptocurrency was seized.
In a statement, the French Public Ministry confirmed the participation of France, Germany and the Netherlands in the operation, which took place on August 26.
According to the same source, of the more than 700,000 machines attacked, 26,000 were located in France and more than 200,000 in the United States, according to the US federal police.
The proliferation of computers hacked by Qakbot, launched in 2008, has made it “the ‘malware’ of choice for cybercriminals around the world,” Estrada explained.
In the last 18 months, Qakbot-facilitated hacking operations cost victims a total of $58 million in ransoms (about 53 million euros).
Targets across the United States include a power engineering company, financial services companies, food distribution companies and a defense equipment producer.
The prosecutor made no reference to any suspects or arrests, stressing that the investigation continues.
Source: TSF
