Google on Tuesday said it has moved to shut down a network of nearly one million hijacked electronic devices used around the world to commit online crimes, while Russia-based hackers also claimed the tech giant were responsible.
The so-called botnet of infected devices, also used to mine bitcoin in secret, has been cut off from the people running it on the internet, at least for now.
“Operators of Glupteba are likely to attempt to gain control of the botnet using backup command and control mechanisms,” wrote Shane Huntley and Luca Nagy from Google’s threat analysis group.
Big technology companies such as Google and Microsoft are increasingly drawn into the fight against cybercrime, which is conducted through their products thus providing them with a unique understanding and access to threats.
Google said the network covers nearly one million devices using Windows worldwide for crimes that involve stealing users’ credentials, and has targeted victims in the United States, India, Brazil and Southeast Asia. .
The company also filed a lawsuit against Dmitry Starovikov and Alexander Filippov in a federal court in New York, seeking an injunction to prevent them from committing wrongdoing on its platform.
Cybersecurity experts first noticed Gluteba in 2011, which spread as free, downloadable software, videos or movies that people unknowingly download to their devices.
However, unlike traditional botnets, which rely on predetermined channels to ensure their existence, Gluptba is programmed to find a replacement server so that it can continue operating after an attack occurs, sues Google. says.
Because the botnet web combines the power of a few million devices, it has unusual power that can be used for large-scale ransomware or other attacks.
To maintain that network, the organization “uses Google ads to post job openings for websites” to carry out illegal work.
The hackers also used Google’s own services to distribute malware — the Internet giant deleted nearly 63 million Google Docs and terminated the more than 1,100 Google accounts used to spread Glupteba.
“Botnets can recover more quickly from disruptions, which makes them much harder to shut down. We are working closely with industry and government,” Google said in a blog post.
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