Quote:The illicit marketplace AlphaBay appears to have resurfaced, four years after a high-profile takedown by international law enforcement agencies.
 
The reboot, according to researchers at Flashpoint, isn’t an exact a replica. Rather, the reconstituted version of the site is described as an homage to the original and a tribute to the now deceased alleged AlphaBay moderator Alexandre Cazes.
 
This latest revamp is headed by threat actor DeSnake, who is believed to be an original moderator of AlphaBay. According to Flashpoint researchers, DeSnake is attempting to win the trust of criminals by claiming “threat actors operating on the forum [can] withdraw funds even if all servers are seized.”
 
Other changes include the banning of posts about illicit drugs, COVID-19 vaccines and ransomware. Site operators also say they will remove posts related to threat activity related to Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan to avoid unwanted attention by law enforcement in those countries.
 
An additional pitch by the service’s operators, promises to “updated source code for a famous banking trojan” as a promotional tactic for the service. There is no indication as to what “famous” banking trojan is.