Story perspectives

FBI Stops Russian DNS Hijack via 23-State Router Scam

6/6/2026

Summary

Story summary

APT28, a Russian intelligence unit, turned home routers into a DNS-hijacking platform that hit in 23 U.S. states.
The FBI reported thousands of routers compromised.
Agents disrupted the operation in April under a court order.
The intrusion exploited unpatched firmware and default passwords to redirect DNS traffic to servers.
The U.K. National Cyber Security Centre listed TP-Link TL-WR841N and 23 models as targets, urging owners to replace or update them.

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Story summary

APT28, a Russian intelligence unit, turned home routers into a DNS-hijacking platform that hit in 23 U.S. states.
The FBI reported thousands of routers compromised.
Agents disrupted the operation in April under a court order.
The intrusion exploited unpatched firmware and default passwords to redirect DNS traffic to servers.
The U.K. National Cyber Security Centre listed TP-Link TL-WR841N and 23 models as targets, urging owners to replace or update them.