How we can separate botnets from the malware operations that rely on them
Summary: Cisco Talos notes that recent law enforcement actions, including Europol's Operation Endgame against droppers such as IcedID, Trickbot and Smokeloader, and the FBI's disruption of the 911 S5 botnet, remove infected devices from attacker control but do not shut down the underlying malware operations. Talos' Kendall McKay said it is not yet clear whether the FBI's disruption of Volt Typhoon's botnet had tangible effects, and that past disruptions such as Emotet and Trickbot saw threats re-emerge because infected devices re-propagate through worm-like capabilities.
What's compelling: A botnet takedown is a win against infrastructure, not against the ransomware or APT that sits on top of it - so a headline about a disruption is not evidence that the payload your organization faces has gone away.
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- Topics
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