TrickBot Malware Abusing MikroTik Routers as Proxies for Command-and-Control

Microsoft on Wednesday detailed a previously undiscovered technique put to use by the TrickBot malware that involves using compromised Internet of Things (IoT) devices as a go-between for establishing communications with the command-and-control (C2) servers.

“By using MikroTik routers as proxy servers for its C2 servers and redirecting the traffic through non-standard ports, TrickBot adds another persistence layer that helps malicious IPs evade detection by standard security systems,” Microsoft’s Defender for IoT Research Team and Threat Intelligence Centre (MSTIC) said.

TrickBot, which emerged as a banking trojan in 2016, has evolved into a sophisticated and persistent threat, with its modular architecture enabling it to adapt its tactics to suit different networks, environments, and devices as well as offer access-as-a-service for next-stage payloads like Conti ransomware.

The expansion to TrickBot’s capabilities comes amid reports of its infrastructure going offline, even as the botnet has continually refined its features to make its attack framework durable, evade reverse engineering, and maintain the stability of its C2 servers.

images from Hacker News