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Vol. 3 · No. 317 Every side. Side by side. Friday, November 13, 2026
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Police seize Gootloader, CastleRAT and StealC servers in Endgame raid

U.S. and European agencies said they seized hundreds of servers and 6.4 million stolen logins tied to Gootloader, CastleRAT and StealC as part of Operation Endgame, according to the Justice Department and Europol.

By AI reporterRuth Cipher · WhatsNewPaper Desk · Written from 2 sources

U.S. and European law enforcement agencies said this week they disrupted infrastructure used by the Gootloader loader, the CastleRAT remote-access trojan and the StealC infostealer, seizing hundreds of servers and millions of stolen login records as part of Operation Endgame1,2,3.

The Justice Department said it removed Gootloader from more than 100 servers, including compromised WordPress sites, and seized U.S. domain names used to deliver and control the malware2. Europol, as cited by BleepingComputer and The Hacker News, said the broader action took 235 servers and 257 domains1,3.

Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office said police seized about 6.4 million stolen logins belonging to more than 40,000 victims, The Hacker News reported1. Europol said more than 6 million victim credentials were found on the criminal infrastructure and that suspects used them for later attacks including ransomware3.

The Justice Department said Gootloader has infected at least 25,000 computers worldwide since 2018 and was used in ransomware attacks against at least 44 U.S. victims, with about $28.8 million in losses2. German police, cited by The Hacker News, put a higher worldwide infection figure, saying investigators believe Gootloader has infected millions of computers since about 20201.

Gootloader spread through fake legal documents on hacked sites, often WordPress, pushed by search-engine poisoning, The Hacker News said1. Unsealed U.S. warrants described operators adding infected machines to a botnet, then selling access to later-infected computers to ransomware actors2.

For Gootloader specifically, The Hacker News said police took down 14 servers and 218 domains and removed malware from 681 hacked websites, with Danish police helping clean those sites1. CastleRAT, known since 2025, had 120 servers and 39 domains seized, and StealC servers were taken down again after a June disruption, the same report said1,3.

No arrests were announced in this week's action, The Hacker News said, while Dutch police continued investigations targeting Gootloader's main suspect1. The Justice Department listed partners including Germany's BKA, Dutch police, Canada's RCMP, Danish police, French cybercrime units, the U.K. National Crime Agency, the Australian Federal Police and Europol2. BleepingComputer named nine participating countries including Bulgaria, Moldova and Poland3.

Dutch police loaded CastleRAT-stolen data into a Check your hack service so people can check an email address, The Hacker News reported, and data is also being shared with Have I Been Pwned and the Shadowserver Foundation1,3. Shadowserver is working with internet providers and incident-response teams to find infected computers, the Justice Department said2.

Police in Denmark and the Netherlands advised WordPress site owners to change administrator passwords, enable multi-factor authentication, remove unknown accounts and update WordPress, themes and plugins1,3. Criminals may still hold copies of stolen logins even after seizures, Dutch police said, according to The Hacker News1.

Sources

  1. The Hacker NewsOperation Endgame Takes Down Gootloader, CastleRAT and StealC Servers, Seizes 6.4M Stolen Logins
  2. U.S. Justice DepartmentGootloader Malware Disrupted in International Cyber Operation
  3. BleepingComputerPolice dismantles Gootloader, CastleRAT, StealC malware infrastructure

Read the original at The Hacker News ↗

How it’s being reported

2 sources

First reported by U.S. Justice DepartmentU.S. Justice Department

Where they agree

  • The action is part of Operation Endgame and targeted malware used to steal credentials and enable ransomware.
  • Authorities seized hundreds of servers and domains.
  • Millions of stolen victim credentials were found on the infrastructure.
  • Victim notification is planned through Shadowserver and other platforms.

Where they differ

How many computers Gootloader has infected worldwide

Side by side

Each outlet's article broken down by our newsroom, in our own words. To read what they wrote, use the button under each one.

The Hacker NewsThe Hacker News

Operation Endgame Takes Down Gootloader, CastleRAT and StealC Servers, Seizes 6.4M Stolen Logins

Victim counts, malware roles, and what site owners and victims can do after the seizures.

Reports the Endgame takedown of Gootloader, CastleRAT and StealC infrastructure, 6.4 million stolen logins, and victim-notification steps from German and Dutch police.

Leaves out Named U.S. officials quoted in the Justice Department release.

Victim counts, malware roles, and what site owners and victims can do after the seizures.

What it reports

  • Police seized about 6.4 million stolen logins from more than 40,000 victims, according to Germany's BKA.
  • Across the three tools, Europol said 235 servers and 257 domains were seized.
  • Gootloader: 14 servers and 218 domains taken down and malware removed from 681 hacked sites.
  • CastleRAT: 120 servers and 39 domains seized; StealC infrastructure was hit again after a June disruption.
  • No arrests were announced; Dutch police said they continued work on Gootloader's main suspect.

Leaves out Named U.S. officials quoted in the Justice Department release.

Read the original at The Hacker News Read the full article at The Hacker News
BleepingComputerBleepingComputer

Police dismantles Gootloader, CastleRAT, StealC malware infrastructure

Europol coordination, participating countries, and earlier Operation Endgame disruptions.

Recounts Europol's nine-country action against Gootloader, CastleRAT and StealC, including domain and server totals and prior Endgame stages.

Leaves out The U.S. $28.8 million ransomware-loss figure and named DOJ officials.

Europol coordination, participating countries, and earlier Operation Endgame disruptions.

What it reports

  • Partners from nine countries seized 257 domains and 235 servers with Europol and Eurojust coordinating.
  • Authorities identified 6.4 million victim datasets on the criminal infrastructure.
  • Europol said suspects used stolen credentials to sell them for later attacks including ransomware.
  • Victim data is to be shared via Have I Been Pwned, CheckjeHack, Shadowserver and other platforms.
  • The action follows earlier 2026 Endgame hits on SocGholish, Amadey and StealC infrastructure.

Leaves out The U.S. $28.8 million ransomware-loss figure and named DOJ officials.

Read the original at BleepingComputer Read the full article at BleepingComputer