WireX Takes Over 70,000 Mobile Phones In Series Of Attacks
Tia Winter | 13 September 2017
Mobile DDoS could soon become a major headache for iGaming operators. WireX recently took over more than 70,000 smartphones in over 100 different countries to carry out DDoS attacks, and online operators are being warned that they could face a wave of DDoS (Distributed Denial of Services) threats in the near future.
These warnings have closely followed the news that WireX, a new Android-targeting botnet, was able to take over the 70,000 mobile phones mentioned above to launch a series of attacks. Google Play app store quickly removed over 300 apps suspected of being infected with the malware following the attacks, some of which demanded ransoms from their targets.
The affected apps remained undetected until the attacks were made in August, as WireX’s malware was deeply embedded in mobile users’ everyday apps. These apps, which are normally innocuous, run in the background of a smartphone’s operations waiting to be used by WireX for DDoS attacks. In the attacks, targets are taken offline by a massive amount of data that overwhelms and freezes their servers.
American Cardroom’s Winning Poker Network Targeted
A series of Distributed Denial of Service attacks was also carried out a few weeks ago on America’s Cardroom’s Winning Poker Network. The assault continued from Thursday to Saturday of Labor Day weekend, disrupting players’ services and cutting them off from tournaments and mobile poker games.
It is still not clear whether the attacks were made in an attempt to extort money from the operator, but they were soon mitigated and Winning Poker Network players were compensated appropriately for the inconvenience experienced.
ACR’s first world player communications throughout the ordeal was one of the most positive features during the time. The firm was dedicated to keeping players informed of the issue through regular social media and Twitter posts, as well as the aforementioned compensation.
WPN Reschedules OSS Cub3ed Poker Series
The DDoS attacks on ACR may actually have been carried out by an anonymous business rival, according to a player’s report claiming that he has had contact with the hacker behind the assaults. The botnet controller reportedly revealed that ‘his job is DDoS’ and that he had been commissioned by another poker brand to attack WPN.
CEO Phil Nagy recently revealed on Twitch that during the most recent WPN outage, attackers launched no less than 26 separate attacks over a period of 48 hours, noting that his company had ’14 million IP addresses pointed at [them]’. The company is busy upgrading its security measures to curb further attacks, and has rescheduled the third leg of its OSS Cub3ed poker series.
Source links:
https://www.casinomeister.com/gambling-news/ddos-attacks-news-weekly-round-september-8-2017/