An online underground marketplace that sells access to hacked servers all over the world is a “hacker’s dream,” according to a cyber security firm.
Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab says the market, called xDedic, is selling access to more than 70,000 compromised government and corporate servers in more than 173 countries with the prices starting at a mere $6.
"It’s a marketplace similar to eBay where people can trade information about cracked servers," Costin Raiu, head of global research at Kaspersky Lab, told Bloomberg. "The forum owners verify the quality of the hacked data and charge a commission of 5 percent for transactions."
Kaspersky said the companies affected include a U.S. aerospace firm, as well as oil companies from the United Arab Emirates and China.
In a post on the Kaspersky website, the company said the “possibilities are truly endless” for hackers who buy server access from xDedic, which Kaspersky said appears to be run by Russian speakers.
The firm said the hacked servers come with pre-installed software that could allow low-level hackers to launch denial-of-service attacks, obtain stolen credit card information or illegally mine digital currencies like bitcoins.