Watch out for DDoS on Minecraft servers!

DarkReading.com reported that Microsoft issued a report about “this new botnet is used to launch distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks on Minecraft servers, which might sound like kid stuff. But enterprises should take note because of the botnet's ability to target both Windows and Linux devices, spread quickly, and avoid detection, the Microsoft team added.”  This December 16, 2022 report entitled “New Botnet Targeting Minecraft Servers Poses Potential Enterprise Threat” (https://www.darkreading.com/attacks-breaches/new-botnet-targeting-minecraft-serversa-potential-enterprise-threat-) included these comments from Patrick Tiquet (vice president of security architecture at Keeper Security):

The concern in this scenario is that there are a large number of servers that can potentially be compromised and then weaponized against other systems, including enterprise assets,…

Gaming servers such as Minecraft are typically managed by private individuals who may or may not be interested in or capable of patching and following cybersecurity best-practices. As a result, this vulnerability could continue unmitigated on a large scale for an extended period of time and could potentially be leveraged to target enterprises in the future.

Very bad news, but not much of a surprise!