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Comment by nhebb | Hacker News Reader

> For example, the FBI discovered that several Internet protocol (IP) addresses associated with known North Korean infrastructure communicated with IP addresses that were hardcoded into the data deletion malware used in this attack.

The biggest surprise was the IP address traced to NY. Why wouldn't the FBI seize this system?

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If some unwitting 3rd party was hacked and used in a crime, you can't just go over to their house or business and "seize" their property.

When the criminals on cops run through your back yard, do the cops turn the inside of your house into a crime zone? Obviously, no. Even if the bad guy runs inside your garage, they are not confiscating your car, lawn mower, etc.

Contrary to popular belief on HN here, police / FBI don't just seize everything whenever they want. It requires warrants and probable cause. Good luck getting a judge to sign a warrant to seize a victims computer...not going to happen.

An IP address associated with a cyber attack, is more like someone stealing your car and using it to hit a bank than someone running through your backyard to escape the cops.

And if someone went through your backyard or your garage while trying to escape from the police, the cops might want to look in your backyard or garage to see if the 2 Kg of heroin he was supposed to carry or the gun he used to shoot at them while fleeing didn't end up there.

Oh, really? Tell that to Microsoft. /s

Maybe they already did and are using it as a honey pot. Maybe that's part of their secret evidence.

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