Microsoft shuts down World’s Largest Botnet Army

According to Microsoft, the company was part of a team that took down the global network of zombie bots. Necurs is one of the largest botnets globally and is also responsible for attacking more than 9 million computers. It is infamous for multiple criminal cyberattacks that include sending phishing emails like fake pharmaceuticals e-mail and stealing personal user data. The hackers use Botnets for taking over remote access of internet-connected systems to install malware and dangerous software. The hackers then use the installed malicious software to steal personal user data like user activity on the computer, send spams and fake e-mails, modify or delete user information without the knowledge of the owner.

The taking down of the Necurs happened after 8 years of consistent hard work and patience along with co-ordinated planning with 35 counties across the world, says Tom Burt, VP of customer security and trust, Microsoft. According to Tom, now that the botnet network is down, hackers will no longer be able to execute cyberattacks with the help of the botnet network.

About Botnet

Botnets are systems of the web-connected computers that run on self-automated commands. Hackers use this network of systems to send malware (malicious software) that allows them remote access to a computer. If the malware is installed or starts affecting the computer, hackers steal personal user information or use the infected device as a host to launch more cyberattacks by sending spams and malware. When the device is infected through malware, it’s called Zombie.

Origin of Botnet Network

The news of the 1st Necurs attack appeared in 2012. According to experts, Necurs is said to have affected more than 9 million computers. Necurs used domain generation algorithms to grow its network. It turned arbitrary domain names into websites and used them to send spams or malware to the attacked computers. Fortunately, Microsoft and the team deciphered the algorithm pattern and predicted the next domain name that Necurs would have used to launch another cyberattack, and prevented the attack from happening.

Signs your computer might be affected

• Systems run slow and programs load slowly 
• Computer crashes frequently 
• Suspicious filling up of storage 
• Your account sends spam emails to your contacts