Key takeaways:
- The FBI used a digital tool called “Perseus” to turn the malware’s functionality against itself and force the program to self-destruct on infected computers.
- The malicious software, known as “Snake,” was used by Russia’s FSB security service to steal and transmit information from a targeted victim base.
- The FBI hopes that this move will deal a death blow to one of Russia’s leading cyber spying programs and is continuing to investigate the extent of the damage caused by the malware.
The FBI has successfully disrupted a 20-year-old malicious software network used by the Russian government to spy on hundreds of computers across 50 countries, the Justice Department announced Tuesday.
Dubbed “Operation Medusa,” the FBI used a digital tool called “Perseus” to turn the malware’s functionality against itself and force the program to self-destruct on infected computers. The malicious software, known as “Snake,” was used by Russia’s FSB security service to steal and transmit information from a targeted victim base that included NATO member governments, journalists and financial and technology sectors.
Senior law enforcement officials said the FBI’s court-authorized neutralization of the Kremlin-backed hackers in the U.S. succeeded, disabling the malware on an undisclosed number of American computers.
“We assess this as being their premier espionage tool,” one of the U.S. officials told journalists ahead of the release.
The FBI hopes that this move will deal a death blow to one of Russia’s leading cyber spying programs. The agency is continuing to investigate the extent of the damage caused by the malware and is working to identify and protect victims.
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