The Hague (AFP)

Authorities in several countries including the Netherlands, Germany, the United States, the United Kingdom and France have taken control of EMOTET, "the world's most dangerous" malware, the European police agency Europol and the European judicial cooperation unit Eurojust.

According to the two organizations, this software operated in the "botnet" mode, a network of hacked computers which made it possible in particular to send malicious emails on a very large scale.

"Law enforcement and judicial authorities around the world have this week put an end to one of the most important botnets of the past decade," Europol and Eurojust said in a joint statement.

"Investigators have taken control of its infrastructure as part of a coordinated international action", allowing "its demolition from within", added Europol and Eurojust.

“EMOTET was more than just malware. What made EMOTET so dangerous was that it was available for hire to other cybercriminals to install other types of malware like Trojans. banking or ransomware on a victim's computer, ”said the two agencies based in The Hague in the Netherlands.

"Through a fully automated process, EMOTET malware was delivered to victims' computers using infected attachments. A variety of decoys were used to trick unsuspecting Internet users into opening these malicious attachments." , specifies the press release.

EMOTET is suspected of being one of the main players in cybercrime in the world, according to Europol and Eurojust, believing that other malware operators like Trickot and Ryuk have benefited from it.

“In the past, EMOTET's email campaigns have also been presented in the form of invoices, shipping notices and information on Covid-19. All of these emails contained malicious Word documents, either as an exhibit attached, or downloadable by clicking on a link. "

In France, an EMOTET campaign had targeted certain departments of the Ministry of Justice, magistrates and Parisian lawyers in September 2020. An investigation was opened for "attacks against automated data processing systems containing personal data put into effect. work by the State "and entrusted to the DGSI.

Other investigations are underway on companies that may have been targeted, but "it is difficult to have an idea of ​​the number of victims because they do not systematically file a complaint during this kind of attack", explained to the AFP Catherine Chambon, Deputy Director of the Fight against Cybercrime at the French National Police.

Thanks to the Europol operation "the guarantees of non-reconstruction" of the network "are more or less guaranteed", considers Catherine Chambon, but there may remain a risk of "redundancies" which could allow cybercriminals to "start another system which would take over from EMOTET ", she added.

© 2021 AFP