2,700 Infected Devices Found in Singapore During Global Cyber Operation

About 2,700 infected devices in Singapore were identified as part of an international cyber operation against a global botnet, the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) announced.

Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo said in parliament on 7 March that cybercriminals exploited poor cyber hygiene practices to infect devices such as baby monitors and internet routers.

No Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) was affected, and there was no evidence that the infected devices were used to target Singapore.

The Singapore government supported the international operation, which took place in 2024, to disinfect compromised servers and devices forming a global botnet.

A botnet is a network of computers infected with malicious software and used to carry out cyberattacks. Devices can be compromised through weak passwords and then used to launch distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks or spam campaigns.

Teo warned that if the botnet had remained active, personal data could have been stolen, and the infected devices could have been used for malicious purposes by foreign state-linked actors.

She compared the compromised devices to a "standby army" that could be deployed for cyberattacks, including those targeting Singapore.

The cyber operation involved disabling malware from infected devices.

As part of remediation efforts, CSA contacted affected device owners to inform them of the infection and advised them on necessary security measures. CSA then monitored the previously infected devices to ensure the malware was fully removed.

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• 2,700 infected devices in Singapore were identified in a global cyber operation.

• Cybercriminals exploited weak passwords and poor cyber hygiene.

• No Critical Information Infrastructure was affected.

Source: CNA