US takes down NightmareStresser DDoS-for-hire platform
On Tuesday, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) seized the domains used by NightmareStresser, one of the world's longest-running distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) platforms.
"Booter services" like NightmareStresser are DDoS-for-hire services that let anyone rent large botnets of compromised routers and a wide range of IoT devices to launch massive DDoS attacks targeting online platforms and services.
Before the nightmare-stresser[.]com and nightmarestresser[.]org were taken down, the stresser service described itself as the "#1 online IP booter" and "the only DDoS tool available 24/7."
As cybersecurity firm Searchlight Cyber reported in 2023, NightmareStresser had over 566,000 registered users and 52 dedicated servers that could launch DDoS attacks of up to 200 Gbps targeting multiple layers of a network (including Layer 7 application protocols and Layer 4 TCP/UDP protocols).
"Since 2022, the NightmareStresser Booter service was used to launch hundreds of thousands of actual or attempted DDoS attacks targeting victims worldwide," the FBI Cyber Division said on Wednesday.
"This enforcement action was supported by Operation PowerOFF, a coordinated effort among international law enforcement agencies aimed at dismantling criminal D DoS-for-hire infrastructures worldwide," a seizure banner now displayed on the seized domains reads.
NightmareStresser seizure banner (BleepingComputer)In December 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) also took down the nightmarestresser[.]com domain and arrested six suspects who allegedly owned multiple DDoS-for-hire services.
Operation PowerOFF is an ongoing, long-running joint law enforcement action that began in December 2018 with the seizure of 15 websites linked to DDoS-as-a-service platforms.
Previously, this operation has led to the takedown of the DigitalStress DDoS-for-hire service in the United Kingdom, the seizure of the Dstat.cc DDoS review platform, and the arrest of two stresser service operators in Poland.
In other joint actions under Operation PowerOFF, law enforcement seized 13 domains and 48 more domains hosting booter platforms in two separate enforcement waves.
Last year, Polish authorities also detained four suspects linked to six DDoS-for-hire platforms behind thousands of attacks targeting schools, government services, businesses, and gaming platforms worldwide since 2022, while the U.S. seized nine domains in the same coordinated crackdown on DDoS services.
References in this story
- www.justice.gov
- NightmareStresser Best IP Booter / IP Stresser 2026 web.archive.org NightmareStresser Best IP Booter / IP Stresser 2026
- Attack-for-Hire Services and the Evolution of DDoS Attacks www.slcyber.io Our threat intelligence analysts assess tools for sale on dark web forums that help criminals to launch their own distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
- FBI Cyber Division (@FBICyberDiv) on X x.com The FBI and DOJ are announcing the seizure of internet domains associated with NightmareStresser, one of the world’s longest running Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) for-hire services. Since 2022, the…
- Six Charged in Mass Takedown of DDoS-for-Hire Sites – Krebs on Security krebsonsecurity.com
- www.justice.gov
- Police infiltrates, takes down DigitalStress DDoS-for-hire service www.bleepingcomputer.com DDoS-for-hire service DigitalStress was taken down on July 2 in a joint law enforcement operation led by the United Kingdom's National Crime Agency (NCA).
- DDoS site Dstat.cc seized and two suspects arrested in Germany www.bleepingcomputer.com The Dstat.cc DDoS review platform has been seized by law enforcement, and two suspects have been arrested after the service helped fuel distributed denial-of-service attacks for years.
- Police cracks down on DDoS-for-hire service active since 2013 www.bleepingcomputer.com Polish police officers part of the country's Central Cybercrime Bureau detained two suspects believed to have been involved in the operation of a long-running DDoS-for-hire service (aka booter or stresser) active since…
- FBI seizes 13 more domains linked to DDoS-for-hire services www.bleepingcomputer.com The U.S. Justice Department announced today the seizure of 13 more domains linked to DDoS-for-hire platforms, also known as 'booter' or 'stressor' services.
- FBI seized domains linked to 48 DDoS-for-hire service platforms www.bleepingcomputer.com The US Department of Justice has seized 48 Internet domains and charged six suspects for their involvement in running 'Booter' or 'Stresser' platforms that allow anyone to easily conduct distributed denial of service…
- Police takes down six DDoS-for-hire services, arrests admins www.bleepingcomputer.com Polish authorities have detained four suspects linked to six DDoS-for-hire platforms, believed to have facilitated thousands of attacks targeting schools, government services, businesses, and gaming platforms worldwide…
- www.justice.gov
