US Dismantles IPStorm Botnet and Arrests Admin for Cybercrime

The US authorities have shut down a major botnet comprising tens of thousands of infected endpoints, which cyber-criminals hired to launch various attacks anonymously.

The IPStorm botnet and its infrastructure were dismantled earlier this year, according to the Department of Justice (DoJ). 

Its alleged administrator, Russian and Moldovan national Sergei Makinin, pleaded guilty back in September to three counts of fraud and related activity in connection with computers. Each count carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.

The botnet operated from June 2019 to December 2022, turning compromised Windows, Linux, Mac and Android devices from around the world into proxies. These could then be rented out by cyber-criminals through two of Makinin’s websites: proxx.io and proxx.net.