Dutch authorities disrupt massive botnet of 17 million devices

As reported by Bleeping Computer, Dutch authorities have successfully dismantled a significant botnet, taking offline approximately 17 million compromised devices and seizing over 200 servers used to control the network.

The operation, a collaboration between Dutch police and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), targeted servers hosted by a local provider. These servers were instrumental in orchestrating cyberattacks by controlling a vast network of computers, tablets, and smartphones. While the specific name of the botnet was not officially disclosed, local media reports suggest a link to the Asocks service, which offers proxy services utilizing millions of IP addresses.

The NCSC confirmed that the seized servers were located in the Netherlands and were being used for criminal activities, indicating that the owners of the infected devices were likely unaware of their participation in these operations.

Source: Bleeping Computer