A supply-chain attack targeting Android-based car head units is using a legitimate device-update app to spread malware that enlists compromised devices in a proxy botnet or uses them for ad fraud. [...]
Other noteworthy stories that might have slipped under the radar: Threema DDoS attack, Evooo1Bot Linux botnet, Crypto4A secures top-tier NIST certification. The post In Other News: Zombie Card Attack, T-Mobile Cut Cable to Stop Hackers, GitHub Denies AI Caused Bug appeared first on SecurityWeek .
In June 2026, Kaspersky discovered malware targeting Android-based car infotainment systems (head units) developed by the Chinese company DoFun. The malware is delivered via the legitimate TWCore system app responsible for firmware updates, which attackers exploit to install a Trojan dropper called JarService without user interaction. JarService decrypts and launches a downloader that connects to a command-and-control server to fetch and execute additional payloads, including a clicker for ad fraud and a module that adds the device to a botnet used as a residential proxy service. The malware consumes system resources, potentially slowing the infotainment system and degrading internet performance. The infection is linked to the MoYu Group threat actor and the BADBOX malicious platform. The developer was informed and addressed the security issues.
A new Mirai-based modular Linux botnet malware called Evooo1Bot has been targeting internet-facing gateway devices, turning them into SOCKS5 traffic relay nodes. [...]
Discover how Kimwolf v7 targets Android IoT devices with HTTP/2 DDoS fingerprinting, Ethereum ENS C2 resolution and Tor backup routing. The post Kimwolf v7: An Evolution of the Kimwolf Botnet appeared first on Unit 42 .
Analysis of the Aeternum botnet loader, a threat leveraging Polygon blockchain smart contracts for decentralized C2 infrastructure and payload execution. The post The Permanent Threat: Analyzing Aeternum’s Blockchain-Based C2 Operations and Communications appeared first on Unit 42 .
This morning, I noticed specific sources "hunting" for vulnerabilities in URLs that I haven't noticed before. All of these URLs appear to be associated with diagnostic tools:
TuxBot v3 Evolution is an IoT botnet-as-a-service framework notable for being built with code generated by a large language model (LLM). The source code includes the AI's chain-of-thought and safety disclaimers. This threat represents a novel approach to IoT botnets leveraging AI-generated code, as reported by Palo Alto Networks Unit 42. There is no indication of known exploits in the wild or specific affected software versions. The threat is currently assessed as medium severity based on available information.
A new MIPS ELF botnet malware sample has been discovered that targets IoT and gateway devices. It uses automated credential-based access with hardcoded default credentials to propagate. The malware downloads and executes secondary payloads using standard busybox commands. Detection rates on VirusTotal are currently low. Network defenders are advised to check for suspicious login attempts and ensure default passwords on IoT devices are changed.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) said today it worked with industry partners to seize hundreds of domains associated with NetNut , a sprawling residential proxy service operated by the publicly-traded Israeli company Alarum Technologies [NASDAQ: ALAR]. The action comes roughly two weeks after KrebsOnSecurity published findings from multiple security firms connecting NetNut to the Popa botnet, a collection of at least two million devices that have been compromised by malicious software with little or no consent from victims. The NetNut homepage today was replaced by this seizure banner from the FBI. On June 19, three different security firms issued similar findings : That NetNut is a residential proxy network which populates a botnet called Popa, and distributes software for devices commonly found in homes, such as smart TVs and streaming boxes. NetNut’s software turns those systems into always-on residential proxy nodes that are rented to others, who predominantly use them to relay abusive and intrusive Internet traffic, such as mass content scraping, advertising fraud, and account takeover activity. Earlier today, NetNut’s homepage was replaced with a seizure notice from the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation division. The seizure notice thanked Google , Lumen , Shadowserver and other industry partners for their help in dismantling hundreds of domains tied to the Popa botnet, which experts say has long been synonymous with NetNut’s residential proxy infrastructure. In a blog post published today, the Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) said NetNut’s proxy network is widely resold and white-labeled by a number of third-party proxy providers, and that its services are heavily sought out by cybercriminals seeking to obfuscate the source of their malicious traffic. The GTIG said that in a single week during June 2026, they observed 316 distinct clusters of threat actors using suspected NetNut exit nodes, including cybercriminal and espionage groups. “These bad actors can use NetNut to mask their origin IP address when accessing victim environments, accessing their own infrastructure, and conducting password spray attacks,” Google’s GTIG wrote . “Furthermore, when a consumer device becomes an exit node, unauthorized network traffic passes through it. This means bad actors can access other private devices on the same home network, effectively exposing them to Internet threats.” Google said it disabled Google accounts and services used by NetNut for malware command and control, and that it shared technical intelligence on NetNut’s software development kits (SDKs) and backend infrastructure with platform providers, law enforcement and research firms. The company also disabled apps known to bundle NetNut’s various SDKs. Omer Weiss , legal counsel for NetNut parent Alarum Technologies, said the company was aware of the FBI seizure and cooperating with investigators. “Alarum takes this matter seriously and will fully cooperate with law enforcement to ensure any misuse of its infrastructure is thoroughly investigated and those responsible are held to account,” Weiss said in a written statement. Benjamin Brundage is founder of the proxy tracking service Synthient , one of the companies that published evidence last month linking the Popa botnet to NetNut and Alarum Technologies. Brundage said the domain seizures appear to have disrupted both the Popa botnet and the NetNut proxy network that rides on top of it. Brundage said NetNut’s apparent demise is likely to be a great disadvantage for the cybercrime community, which was already reeling from legal actions by Google earlier this year that seized infrastructure for NetNut’s biggest competitor — IPIDEA . “I think this takedown is going to have a big impact, because NetNut gained significant popularity after the IPIDEA takedown,” he said. “Also NetNut has been incredibly common among resellers, and they were on par with IPIDEA in terms of their daily tr…
On May 28, 2026, the Dutch National Police and National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) jointly dismantled a large-scale botnet comprising approximately 17 million compromised devices worldwide. The botnet infrastructure was hosted on about 200 servers physically located in the Netherlands, which were seized from a local hosting provider. The compromised devices included computers, smartphones, and tablets, and were reportedly used as part of a residential proxy service, likely the Asocks network. The hosting provider permanently took the botnet infrastructure offline following the seizure. The NCSC issued prevention guidance emphasizing prompt patching, multi-factor authentication, changing default credentials, securing Wi-Fi with WPA2/WPA3, and maintaining visibility over network devices. This takedown is part of a broader pattern of coordinated international law enforcement actions against proxy and botnet networks in 2026.
Vidar is a name most infostealer trackers know well -- an Arkei descendant that has been snatching browser credentials and crypto wallets since 2018. It usually ships as a .NET binary or a C++ PE. The v1.5 sample we pulled from Triage on May 13, 2026 is neither. It is a 7 MB Go 1.25.4 native PE with a twelve-category sandbox scoring system, dead-drop C2 via Telegram and Steam profile pages, and enough crypto primitives to make a librarian blush.
An Iranian threat actor's operational infrastructure was exposed through an open directory, revealing a 15-node relay network spanning Finland and Iran, an SSH-based botnet framework, and an active command and control server. The exposed bash history documented the full operation, including tunnel deployment, DDoS tooling development, and botnet creation. The actor used on-host compilation to evade detection and leveraged a Python script for mass SSH deployment. The botnet client, compiled and renamed 'hex' on infected hosts, showed automatic reconnection capabilities. This operation appears to be financially or personally motivated rather than state-directed, with infrastructure dual-purposed for censorship bypass and attack operations.
A sophisticated new malware called KadNap has been discovered targeting Asus routers and conscripting them into a botnet for proxying malicious traffic. The malware employs a custom version of the Kademlia Distributed Hash Table protocol to conceal its command-and-control infrastructure within a peer-to-peer system, evading traditional network monitoring. The botnet, which has grown to over 14,000 infected devices, is marketed by a proxy service called Doppelganger, tailored for criminal activity. More than 60% of KadNap's victims are based in the United States. The malware demonstrates versatility by targeting various edge networking devices and employing different C2 servers for different victim types.
A sophisticated phishing campaign impersonating Tesseract OCR was discovered, utilizing typosquatting and ClickFix techniques. The attack chain, named OCRFix, employed multi-stage malware deployments with heavy obfuscation and defense evasion techniques, including EtherHiding. The campaign used BNB Smart Chain TestNet to hide C2 domains through smart contracts. The malware delivery process involved three stages: a loader, a secondary loader for persistence, and a bot listener. The final payload connected to a bot control panel, allowing attackers to manage infected hosts and deploy additional malware. The campaign demonstrated a combination of simple initial access methods with complex delivery chains, highlighting the ongoing effectiveness of techniques like ClickFix and the importance of robust phishing defenses.
The RondoDox botnet is actively exploiting the React2Shell vulnerability to compromise thousands of unpatched devices. This threat leverages a known code execution flaw to hijack vulnerable systems, primarily targeting those that have not applied available patches. While exploitation in the wild is not yet widely confirmed, the botnet's activity indicates a growing risk of large-scale device compromise. European organizations with unpatched infrastructure are at risk of device hijacking, leading to potential service disruption and data integrity issues. The threat is medium severity but could escalate if exploitation becomes widespread. Mitigation requires immediate patching of affected systems and enhanced network monitoring for unusual botnet-related traffic. Countries with high IoT and enterprise device usage, especially those with historically targeted sectors, are more likely to be affected. The threat does not require user interaction but targets unpatched systems, increasing its potential impact. Defenders should prioritize vulnerability management and incident response readiness to mitigate this evolving botnet threat.
The Kimwolf Botnet is a recently reported high-severity botnet threat that targets local networks. It is actively stalking local network environments to potentially compromise devices and expand its reach. While detailed technical specifics are limited, the botnet's presence on local networks suggests it may exploit network vulnerabilities or weak device security to propagate. There are no known exploits in the wild yet, but the threat is considered high priority due to its potential impact. European organizations could face risks including unauthorized access, data exfiltration, and disruption of network services. Mitigation requires enhanced local network monitoring, segmentation, and device hardening beyond generic advice. Countries with high IoT and networked device adoption, significant industrial infrastructure, or strategic geopolitical importance in Europe are more likely to be targeted. Given the botnet’s ability to infiltrate local networks without requiring user interaction or authentication, the suggested severity is high. Defenders should prioritize detection capabilities and proactive network hygiene to mitigate this emerging threat.
The RondoDox botnet exploits a critical vulnerability known as React2Shell to compromise IoT devices and web servers. This flaw allows attackers to execute arbitrary code remotely, enabling the hijacking of vulnerable systems to incorporate them into the botnet. Although no specific affected versions or patches have been disclosed yet, the threat is considered critical due to the potential scale and impact. European organizations operating IoT infrastructure or web services are at risk, especially those with devices lacking timely security updates. The botnet could be leveraged for large-scale DDoS attacks, data exfiltration, or further network infiltration. Mitigation requires proactive network monitoring, segmentation of IoT devices, and rapid deployment of vendor patches once available. Countries with high IoT adoption and significant web infrastructure, such as Germany, the UK, France, and the Netherlands, are most likely to be targeted. Given the ease of exploitation and critical impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, the suggested severity is critical. Defenders should prioritize detection and containment efforts immediately to prevent widespread compromise.
The RondoDox botnet is actively exploiting a vulnerability known as React2Shell to compromise Next.js servers. This flaw allows attackers to breach server environments running Next.js, a popular React framework for server-side rendering. Although no CVSS score is assigned, the threat is rated high severity due to the potential for unauthorized access and control over affected servers. The exploitation enables attackers to deploy botnet activities, which can lead to data breaches, service disruption, and further lateral movement within compromised networks. European organizations using Next.js for web applications are at risk, especially those in countries with high adoption of modern web technologies. Mitigation requires immediate patching once available, network segmentation, and monitoring for unusual outbound traffic indicative of botnet command and control. Countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and the Netherlands are likely to be most affected due to their large tech sectors and extensive use of Next.
A persistent nine-month RondoDoX botnet campaign has been targeting IoT devices and web applications. The threat actors have recently shifted to weaponizing a critical Next.js vulnerability, deploying malicious payloads like 'React2Shell' and cryptominers. The campaign, spanning from March to December 2025, shows quick adaptation to latest attack trends. The activity is divided into three phases: initial reconnaissance, web application exploitation, and IoT botnet deployment. The attackers have been using multiple command and control servers and deploying various malware variants. The campaign has intensified in December 2025 with a focus on Next.js exploitation. The impact includes widespread IoT device compromise, Next.js application risks, credential harvesting, and persistent multi-architecture threats.
