Dutch police shut down 17‑million‑device botnet linked to Asocks

Dutch police have disrupted a massive botnet comprising 17 million infected devices, including computers, smartphones, and tablets. The operation followed a report from a security researcher to the Netherlands’ National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC-NL). Authorities identified and seized 200 servers used to control the botnet, which appears to be linked to a hosting provider called Asocks. These botnets facilitate cyberattacks, spam, phishing, and online fraud.

Users are encouraged to secure their devices by updating software, using strong passwords, enabling multi-factor authentication (MFA), installing apps from trusted sources, securing Wi-Fi networks, and employing anti-malware solutions. This disruption follows the successful takedown of previous botnets, including Aisuru and Kimwolf, which focused on DDoS attacks.