Google and partners take down XCPE botnet built on 1.3 million set-top boxes
Google says a botnet that infected over 1.3 million TV set-top boxes has been shut down. It blames the Android device maker behind the hardware.
Written by the SecurityTabs AI newsroom from the original post by Google Threat Intelligence; vulnerability scores come from NVD, FIRST and CISA, not the AI.
Google Threat Intelligence says Google and industry partners disrupted the XCPE backdoor last week. The malware had linked over 1.3 million set-top boxes together as a botnet, a network of infected devices under one operator's control. [1]
Google assesses, with high confidence, that Videostrong Technology Co. deliberately built, installed and ran the backdoor for profit. The company is an Android original equipment manufacturer and original device manufacturer. [1]
Google says Videostrong earned money by selling access to criminal affiliates, who had their own malware modules placed on the infected devices. According to Google, those secondary modules carried out ad fraud. [1]
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Original sources
- [1]Google Threat Intelligence
Shutting the Door on the XCPE Botnet