Microsoft Leads Sting Operation to Disrupt Zeus Botnets

I'm finding the details of this operation to be very fascinating, but I'm also rather conflicted about it. It seems like Microsoft is doing a lot of good going on the offensive against these troublemakers, but I'm also concerned about abuse and collateral damage. I don't know enough yet to know if those concerns are unfounded or not.

Zeus source has been released, and people say that Citadel is one result.

There's some odd things about the botnet creators; they're doing a SaaS model; the software comes with release notes and a licence agreement; and they have a social network so people can suggest improvements.

(http://blog.seculert.com/2012/02/citadel-open-source-malware...)

Here's a piechart (IT IS AWFUL. I didn't create it.) showing infection rates per country of Citadel.

(http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rL0YPxLvhHw/TzLb31lbmXI/AAAAAAAAAE...)

I got that from this thread, which has a bunch of interesting malware links.

(http://forums.spybot.info/showthread.php?t=64861)

Remember when they shut down conficker? when they disabled gazzillion of c&c domains.

Obviously, one less botnet is a good thing, but does anyone else see a problem with Microsoft "raiding" companies and "seizing" equipment? What legal justification does a private corporation have to act like a law enforcement agency?

The articles I've seen use language like "accompanied by" or "escorted by" US Marshals. Shouldn't this be the FBI or Secret Service doing the raiding and seizing, maybe with Microsoft providing technical consulting?

Maybe I'm being pedantic but the article misuses "sting". The action seems to have simply been a seizure of critical botnet infrastructure, using some information secretly gathered in court, but a sting is "a deceptive operation designed to catch a person committing a crime".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sting_operation

They would make the video at the end use silverlight

Im so disappointed....

That this community has such a harsh opinion against MSoft.

Case and point, they do something that will save consumers and businesses alike millions of dollars, yet they only receive 10 points on HN.

While an opinion article punishing MSoft here: "I Won The Windows Phone Challenge, But Lost 'Just Because'" (skattertech.com) received well over 360 points for MSoft and more than 60 comments.

Its disappointing how much negativity has been casted on MSoft, when they are tried exceedingly hard to change both their image and their practices from the old days.

And of course, ill probably be voted down for this.