/>iThe Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recently issued a public service announcement “to inform individuals and businesses about proxy services taking advantage of end of life routers susceptible to vulnerabilities.” When technology reaches its end of life, the manufacturer no longer supports patching the technology, which opens it to vulnerabilities. This has been a long-standing problem—you may remember that Microsoft no longer supports Windows 7, 8, or 8.1, and support for Windows 10 will be terminated on October 14, 2025.
When technology is not updated, it is left open to hacking by threat actors—this includes routers. According to the FBI, “Routers dated 2010 or earlier likely no longer receive software updates issued by the manufacturer and could be compromised by cyber actors exploiting known vulnerabilities.” These routers are being hit with TheMoon malware. “This malware allows cyber actors to install proxies on unsuspecting victim routers and conduct cyber crimes anonymously.”
The FBI recommends individuals and companies take the following precautions:
- If the router is at its end of life, replace the device with an updated model if possible.
- Immediately apply any available security patches and/or firmware updates for your devices.
- Login online to the router settings and disable remote management/remote administration, save the change, and reboot the router.
- Use strong passwords that are unique and random and contain at least 16 but no more than 64 characters. Avoid reusing passwords and disable password hints.
- If you believe there is suspicious activity on any device, apply any necessary security and firmware updates, change your password, and reboot the router.
If you have an old router, now is the time to upgrade it.
