The shutdown of some servers did not lead to a web apocalypse, but 17,000 PCs in Italy are still infected with DNSCharger.
A few days ago, the FBI decided to shut down the servers used by the creators of the DNSCharger virus.
Much has been written about this, including in the Italian specialized press, and much has been made of mimicking the tone – considered alarmist by some – used to warn netizens.
Yet, precisely thanks to the spread of the news, many Italians were able to realize they had been affected by the virus, and thus could promptly remedy the situation before the fateful date of July 9, the server shutdown date.
Today, the DNSChanger Working Group has taken stock, announcing that the infected PCs in Italy before the “blackout alarm” were around 26,000, while as of today, there are “only” 17,000.
A number certainly still too high, but already significantly reduced compared to the initial outbreak.
In the chart accompanying this article – created by the DNSChanger Working Group – you can observe how the number of infected PCs has decreased as the date of July 9, 2012, approached. This means that users took action and, thanks to the online tools provided by service providers and the aforementioned group, managed to track down and eliminate the virus.
Precisely as predicted, PCs still infected at the moment are unable to browse the internet, as they cannot find their destination server, since it is one of the servers shut down by the FBI’s measure.
It will take a few more weeks for the situation to return to normal, either by using specific antivirus software or by waiting for the blocked servers to resume operations. The FBI has indeed decided to monitor the machines to prevent them from being reused by new cybercriminals.
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