Hackers Infect 'Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare II' Players With Self-Spreading Malware, Activision Takes Game Offline For Investigation

A security researcher verified the presence of the code shown in the screenshot within the malware sample.

PlayStation 5 Call of Duty Modern Warfare II game packaging is seen at the shop in Krakow, Poland on July 17, 2023.

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Hackers have been targeting 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II players with self-spreading malware for approximately a month, exploiting a bug that was reported to the game's publisher, Activision, five years ago. A screenshot posted by a user, identified as X, has revealed the code behind this malicious software.

Maurice Heumann, a security researcher who has been identifying and reporting bugs in various Call of Duty games for years, stated that the malware exploits a bug that he personally discovered and reported to Activision in 2018. Despite the report, no fix was ever published, and follow-up communications with the gaming giant did not result in a resolution.

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According to Heumann, the bug is "super easy to exploit" and involves a simple buffer overflow with minimal limitations, which is a well-known class of vulnerability. Writing a full-fledged exploit for this bug is a straightforward task.

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Confirmation Of Malware And Identification As "CoDworm"

A security researcher verified the presence of the code shown in the screenshot within the malware sample. Some antivirus engines have identified the sample as a "CoDworm," linking it to the Call of Duty series.

Game Taken Offline For Investigation

In response to the reported issue, Activision announced that it has taken Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 offline on the Steam gaming platform while investigating the matter.

As of now, the motives of the hackers behind this self-spreading malware remain unknown. The specific goals and potential impacts on players are yet to be determined.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, a popular game in the Call of Duty series, was released by Activision in 2009.

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