Minecraft players targeted by criminals posing as coders in ‘malicious’ attack
20 June 2025, 22:35
Cyber criminals masquerading as game coders have deployed a multi-stage attack to “quietly” infect Minecraft players’ devices.
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Around 1,500 devices are thought to have been compromised by the “malicious” malware campaign, according to cybersecurity firm Check Point.
Researchers claim the software, which was created to steal from bank accounts, cryptocurrency wallets and applications, was developed by a Russian-speaking attacker.
The malware poses as popular Minecraft mods like Oringo and Tanuahi, commonly known as cheat tools within the community, to gain access to users’ devices.
Check Point said: “The infection begins when a player downloads the seemingly harmless Minecraft mod from GitHub.
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“Once the game is launched, the mod checks whether it’s operating in a virtual environment, a common approach used by security researchers and sandboxes to run samples in an isolated environment.
“If no virtual environment or analysis tools are detected, it proceeds to the next phase.The malicious mod then downloads a second-stage payload designed to steal sensitive information.
“This is followed by a third and final component: a more advanced spyware tool capable of harvesting credentials from web browsers, cryptocurrency wallets, and applications such as Discord, Steam, and Telegram. “It can also capture screenshots and collect detailed information about the infected system.”
A Minecraft spokesperson told Sky News that player safety is a "top priority for us" and the company is "committed to investigating reported security violations."
"When we receive reports of content that does not comply with our usage guidelines, we take action as appropriate," they said."We encourage players to report any suspicious content through our official website and leverage our resources to make informed choices."
Minecraft is the best-selling video game of all time, becoming the first to sell over 300 million copies in October 2023.
Each month, there are over 200 million active players and around 65% of those are said to be under the age of 21, according to Check Point. Minecraft is a “sandbox” game, meaning users have a high degree of freedom and can create their own virtual worlds and experiences.
The first alpha version of Minecraft was launched in 2009 before it was given a full release two years later.
LBC has contacted Minecraft for comment.
