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Edition: U.S. Article Comments (3) Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read UPDATE 1-Geithner says Congress will pass debt limit increase 13 Apr 2011 U.S. plans new push on Arab-Israeli peace: Clinton 12 Apr 2011 Senate panel slams Goldman in scathing crisis report 13 Apr 2011 Senate panel slams Goldman in scathing crisis report 13 Apr 2011 Brain shrinks a decade before Alzheimer's appears 13 Apr 2011 Discussed 156 China tells U.S. to quit as human rights judge 141 Reid says Republicans want shutdown to close clinics 117 Obama, Congress struggle to find budget deal Watched South Korean "super gun" packs hi-tech killing power Mon, Feb 14 2011 Argentine models bare it all Thu, Apr 7 2011 X-47B - the future of autonomous aerial warfare Fri, Feb 11 2011 SMALL BUSINESS Do fries go with that app? Worried about how many calories you are going to consume in a serving of fries? A new iPhone application may help. After taking a picture of the meal with the phone, the app gives a calorie read-out almost instantly Full Article Caribbean rum maker looks to tap U.S. market Startup targets online vacation rentals U.S. shuts down massive cyber theft ring Tweet Share this By Diane Bartz and Jim Finkle WASHINGTON/BOSTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities claimed one of their biggest victories against cyber crime as they shut down a ring they said used malicious software to take control of more than 2 million PCs around the... Email Print Factbox Factbox: Environment, high-speed rail hit in budget deal Tue, Apr 12 2011 Related News Accused middleman admits guilt in insider case Mon, Apr 11 2011 Court rules against Arizona immigration law Mon, Apr 11 2011 Google seals ITA deal but antitrust review looms Mon, Apr 11 2011 J&J settles U.S., UK bribery, kickback charges Fri, Apr 8 2011 Analysis & Opinion Tech wrap: HTC trumps Nokia Where to put the ring-fence: implications of the UK bank report Related Topics U.S. » Technology » Stocks By Diane Bartz and Jim Finkle WASHINGTON/BOSTON | Wed Apr 13, 2011 6:55pm EDT WASHINGTON/BOSTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities claimed one of their biggest victories against cyber crime as they shut down a ring they said used malicious software to take control of more than 2 million PCs around the world, and may have led to theft of more than $100 million. A computer virus, dubbed Coreflood, infected more than 2 million PCs, enslaving them into a "botnet" that grabbed banking credentials and other sensitive data its masters used to steal funds via fraudulent banking and wire transactions, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Wednesday. The government shuttered that botnet, which had operated for a decade, by seizing hard drives used to run it after a federal court in Connecticut gave the go-ahead. "This was big money stolen on a large scale by foreign criminals. The FBI wanted to stop it and they did an incredibly good job at it," said Alan Paller, director of research at the SAN Institute, a nonprofit group that helps fight cyber crime. The vast majority of the infected machines were in the United States, but the criminal gang was likely overseas. "We're pretty sure a Russian crime group was behind it," said Paller. Paller and other security experts said it was hard to know how much money the gang stole. It could easily be tens of millions of dollars and could go above $100 million, said Dave Marcus, McAfee Labs research and communications director. A civil complaint against 13 unnamed foreign nationals was also filed by the U.S. district attorney in Connecticut. It accused them of wire and bank fraud. The Justice Department said it had an ongoing criminal investigation. The malicious Coreflood software was used to infect computers with keylogging software that stole user names, passwords, financial data and other information, the Justice Department said. "The seizure of the Coreflood servers and Internet domain names is expected to prevent criminals from using Coreflood or computers infected by Coreflood for their nefarious purposes," U.S. Attorney David Fein said in a statement. In March, law enforcement raids on servers used by a Rustock botnet were shut down after legal action against them by Microsoft Corp. Authorities severed the Rustock IP addresses, effectively disabling the botnet. Rustock had been one of the biggest producers of spam e-mail, with some tech security experts estimating they produced half the spam that fills people's junk mail bins. A botnet is essentially one or more servers that spread malicious software and use the software to send spam or to steal personal information or data that can be used to empty a victim's bank account. U.S. government programmers shut down the Coreflood botnet on Tuesday. They also instructed the computers enslaved in the botnet to stop sending stolen data and to shut down. A similar tactic was used in a Dutch case, but it was the first time U.S. authorities had used this method to shut down a botnet, according to court documents. Victims of the botnet included a real estate company in Michigan that lost $115,771, a South Carolina law firm that lost $78,421 and a Tennessee defense contractor that lost $241,866, according to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut. The government plans to work with Internet service providers around the country to identify other victims. (Reporting by Diane Bartz and Jim Finkle; editing by Gary Hill and Andre Grenon) U.S. Technology Tweet this Share this Link this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story directly or with relevant tangential information. We try to block comments that use offensive language, all capital letters or appear to be spam, and we review comments frequently to ensure they meet our standards. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. Comments (3) eaanders wrote: Does the that computer crime ring include the Israel and US sabotaging of the Iranian nuclear program? Apr 13, 2011 5:54pm EDT -- Report as abuse JamVee wrote: Hey Mr. Eaanders . . . What is it that you don’t like about the US (and others), using hi-tech means to defend themselves against their sworn (and very vocal about it) enemy? I suppose part of your agenda includes an Iranian Ayatollah sitting in the White House . . . ? Apr 13, 2011 7:42pm EDT -- Report as abuse IANGMNTAFM wrote: Theft is one thing. Guarding national security against a VERY dangerous and VERY real threat is another. Plus would you rather see a virus that doesn’t sacrifice human lives or an armed conflict with an untold number of casualties? Apr 13, 2011 9:22pm EDT -- Report as abuse See All Comments » Add Your Comment Social Stream (What's this?) © Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters Editorial Editions: Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom United States Reuters Contact Us Advertise With Us Help Journalism Handbook Archive Site Index Video Index Reader Feedback Mobile Newsletters RSS Podcasts Widgets Your View Analyst Research Thomson Reuters Copyright Disclaimer Privacy Professional Products Professional Products Support Financial Products About Thomson Reuters Careers Online Products Acquisitions Monthly Buyouts Venture Capital Journal International Financing Review Project Finance International PEhub.com PE Week FindLaw Super Lawyers Attorney Rating Service Reuters on Facebook Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. 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