Minecraft is one of the most popular games on the planet. So, of course, that makes Minecraft players a prime target for hackers.In a new cybersecurity report, researchers from McAfee Labs describe new malware that has already logged more than 116,000 hits. When the report was published on June 2, McAfee Labs found that the campaign logs between 2,000 and 3,000 malicious hits every day. Dubbed WeedHack, the malware is being offered as a malware-as-a-service (MaaS). Rather than being shared on the dark web, McAfee reports that WeedHack is readily available on the open web. This means that bad actors don't need any real technical knowledge to deploy the malware. For as low as $5 per month, would-be hackers can access WeedHack, infect a target of their choice, and deploy a range of tools against that victim.
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McAfee Labs also uncovered a Telegram channel for WeedHack customers made up of more than 850 members. Inside the Telegram channel, McAfee found that many of the attackers appeared to be teenagers and young adults who used the malware-as-a-service to cyberbully other young people. WeedHack customers discussed utilizing the remote access capabilities to threaten, harass, and spy on their victims.WeedHack is spreading through YouTube and Google, report saysThe report finds that WeedHack is primarily spread through YouTube videos promoting Minecraft mods, clients, and other game-enhancing third-party add-ons. In reality, the Minecraft mods and clients are really the WeedHack malware in disguise.McAfee's report includes a screenshot of a YouTube comments section of a video promoting the malware. It shows a viewer informing the video creator that his computer warned about potential malware when downloading the file in the video description. The bad actor then assures the user that the file is definitely not malware.In addition, the bad actors reportedly use SEO poisoning tactics to rank fake websites and pages that pose as real Minecraft clients. McAfee Labs listed the following legitimate clients as targets for WeedHack:
