How to Remove Illegitimate VPNs and Protect Yourself from Botnets: FBI Advisory

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has successfully dismantled what is believed to be the world’s largest botnet, known as 911 S5. This massive network of compromised IP addresses spanned over 190 countries and resulted in billions of dollars in confirmed victim losses.

The 911 S5 botnet was cleverly disguised as free VPN applications, which were bundled within pirated video games and software. Once downloaded, these applications silently installed a proxy backdoor on victims’ devices without their knowledge, making them unwitting participants in cybercrime activities.

The FBI has identified six VPN applications used by cybercriminals to route illicit traffic through victims’ devices: MaskVPN, DewVPN, PaladinVPN, ProxyGate, ShieldVPN, and ShineVPN. These applications were used to carry out a range of criminal activities, including bomb threats, financial fraud, identity theft, child exploitation, and initial access brokering.

To remove these illegitimate VPNs from your device, the FBI recommends checking the Task Manager for processes associated with these applications and searching the Start menu for any traces of the software. If found, users should uninstall the applications through the system settings and ensure that all related files are deleted from the device.

In addition to removing these malicious VPN applications, the FBI advises users to protect themselves from botnets by avoiding untrustworthy websites and ads, being cautious of suspicious emails, and keeping antivirus software updated. Businesses are also urged to install updates and patches, evaluate security policies, and enforce strong credentials to prevent botnet attacks.

By following these guidelines and taking proactive measures to secure their devices, individuals and businesses can protect themselves from falling victim to botnet attacks and other cyber threats.