A global law enforcement operation disrupted RedLine and Meta infostealers, seizing their infrastructure and making arrests.
The Dutch police announced it has dismantled infrastructure used by RedLine and Meta infostealers as part of an international law enforcement operation led by Eurojust that was code-named Operation Magnus.
RedLine and META targeted millions of victims worldwide, according to Eurojust it was one of the largest malware platforms globally. Authorities from the Netherlands, the United States, Belgium, Portugal, the United Kingdom and Australia took part in the operation.
The following authorities participated in the Operation Magnus.
- Australia: Australian Federal Police
- The Netherlands: National Police, Team Cybercrime Limburg, Public Prosecution Service
- United States: Federal Bureau of Investigation; Naval Criminal Investigative Service; Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations; Department of Defense Criminal Investigative Service; Army Criminal Investigation Division
- Belgium: Federal Prosecutor’s Office; Federal Police
- Portugal: Polícia Judiciária
- United Kingdom: National Crime Agency
Cybersecurity firm ESET also supported international law enforcement operations.
Law enforcement agencies seized three servers in the Netherlands, seized two domains, unsealed charges in the United States and took two people into custody in Belgium.
The two infostealers allowed operators to harvest usernames, passwords, contact info, and crypto-wallets from victims, the threat actors sold this data to criminals for financial theft and hacking.
“Investigations into RedLine and Meta started after victims came forward and a security company notified authorities about possible servers in the Netherlands linked to the software. Authorities discovered that over 1 200 servers in dozens of countries were running the malware. To take down the transnational malware, Eurojust coordinated cooperation between authorities from the Netherlands, the United States, Belgium, Portugal, United Kingdom and Australia.” reads the press release published by Eurojust. “Through Eurojust, authorities were able to quickly exchange information and coordinate actions to take down the infostealers.”
The police took control of the servers and sent a message to the alleged perpetrators, including a video showing that the international law enforcement coalition was able to obtain crucial data on their network and will shut down their criminal activities. Then Belgian authorities took down several Redline and Meta communication channels.
The authorities also gained access to a database of clients of the two malware-as-a-service operations (RedLine and Meta), Eurojust confirmed that the investigation is still ongoing.
ESET released a free online scanner for Redline and META that can help users detect and remove malware. The cybersecurity firm’s recommendations for malware victims are:
- Consult an expert: For thorough malware removal and system security, seek professional help if needed.
- Change passwords: After malware removal, update passwords for key accounts (email, banking, work, social media) and enable two-factor authentication.
- Use a password manager: Simplifies managing strong, unique passwords across accounts.
- Monitor financial accounts: Check bank statements and report any suspicious transactions promptly.
- Report stolen data: Notify relevant parties if sensitive details (e.g., payment info) may have been compromised.
- Update software: Keep your operating system, security software, and firewall up to date to patch vulnerabilities.
- Consider extra security layers: Use additional protection like a VPN for safer online activity.
- Long-term monitoring: Regularly check for unusual account activity to guard against potential identity theft.
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Pierluigi Paganini
(SecurityAffairs – hacking, RedLine and Meta infostealers)
