Key Takeaways
- A mysterious cybercriminal group has targeted Call of Duty gamers with malware, impacting cheaters and players using third-party software for gaming enhancement or security.
- The malware attack has led to the theft of credentials and Bitcoin from numerous players.
- The developer of the game has intervened to assist the victims.
A mysterious cybercriminal group has launched a malware attack targeting Call of Duty gamers, particularly those bending the rules through cheats.
The malware stole the Bitcoin (BTC) holdings of a large number of players.
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PhantomOverlay, a provider of Call of Duty cheat codes, initially detected the cyberattack after several users encountered unauthorized transactions. Competing cheat code vendors have also confirmed similar attacks.
The attackers stole credentials and broke into some of the victims' Electrum wallets, draining their BTC holdings. It is still unclear how much crypto was stolen.
The scope of affected accounts is vast, including over 3.6 million Battlenet accounts, 561,000 Activision accounts, and 117,000 accounts from Elite PVPers. However, PhantomOverlay stated in a recent Telegram announcement that these figures were exaggerated.
According to Vx Underground, an informer about malware and cybersecurity, the victims included not only cheaters but also gamers who used third-party software for security or the improvement of their gaming experience:
It should be noted that some of these accounts are also not cheaters. Some users impacted utilized gaming software for latency improvement, VPNs, and Controller Boosting software.
Activision Blizzard, the developer behind Call of Duty, has stepped in to assist impacted players in collaboration with cheat code providers.
The attack acts as a wake-up call for gamers, crypto enthusiasts, and, in fact, anyone on the internet, reminding them of the importance of cybersecurity.
In other news, former takeaway worker Jian Wen has been found guilty of laundering $2 billion in Bitcoin.
