Microsoft targets malware vendor Trickbot amid US election fears

Microsoft said Monday it had taken down malware vendor Trickbot in an effort to thwart attempts to meddle with the upcoming US presidential election.

The tech giant’s announcement came as The New York Times reported United States Cyber Command also targeted the group amid fears hackers could use malware to upend the November 3 vote, in which President Donald Trump seeks a second term against challenger Joe Biden.

“We disrupted Trickbot through a court order we obtained as well as technical action we executed in partnership with telecommunications providers around the world,” said Tom Burt, Microsoft’s vice president for customer security and trust.

Burt said Trickbot distributed ransomware, a type of malware that would allow hackers to infect a computer and then take control of it at an opportune time.