Blackshades rat in action: Hackers arrested worldwide for malware that allows RAT, backdoor hacking - TomoNews

Recent raids to take down Blackshades malware hackers took place in more than a dozen countries and involved law enforcement agencies in Europe, Asia, Australia and North America. At least 90 Blackshades hackers have been arrested in the crackdown, which spanned more than a dozen countries and involved more than 300 searches. U.S. prosecutors announced charges on Monday against users of a software program called Blackshades. According to the FBI, hackers who paid $40 could use Blackshades to hack into other people’s computers from anywhere in the world. Hackers would gain access to sexually explicit photographs from personal computers, train victims’ webcams on them using a remote access tool and even send threats to victims who tried to block the online intrusions. The FBI added that Blackshades recorded sales of more than $350,000 between September 2010 and April 2014. Buyers came from more than 100 countries. Prosecutors said users could “lock” victims' files, making them inaccessible, access victims' keystrokes, access their passwords and send messages and emails which, when clicked on by recipients, would cause viruses to spread further. Officials confiscated computers, laptops, mobile telephones, routers, external hard drives and USB memory sticks in a two-day operation coordinated by Eurojust in The Hague and supported by European investigators. Authorities also discovered cash, illegal firearms and drugs.