Hackers used .gov.br sites to promote illegal gambling
The reputation of an official domain is a positioning asset, and a group of Chinese hackers decided to exploit it. According to a TecMundo report, the gang identified as Duendes del Juego compromised Brazilian websites with .gov.br domains belonging to municipal, state, and federal agencies to manipulate Google search results and redirect users to an international network of illegal gambling sites.
The method involved installing programs within the systems of the affected agencies to redirect visitors to unauthorized betting platforms. By operating on official addresses endorsed by national authorities, the perpetrators sought to appropriate the trust and authority accumulated by these domains to influence search engines and gain visibility for their links.
The attacks were detected by Amit Yardeni, a researcher at Check Point Research, who specified that the group has been operating since last year and maintains ties with Earth Berberoka, another Asian entity associated with gambling-related hacks.
From the official side, the Government Center for the Prevention, Treatment, and Response to Cyber Incidents, under the Institutional Security Office of the Presidency of the Republic, reported that no civilian data breaches were detected as a result of the attacks. The agency also clarified that it can offer initial technical guidance, but the management of each incident remains in the hands of the teams responsible for the IT assets of the victim organization, as they have direct access and control over those environments.
Brazil regulates its betting market starting January 2025 under the bet.br domain, which functions as a single brand for authorized offerings, while the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting periodically orders the blocking of thousands of unauthorized domains. This crackdown partly explains why illegal operators seek visibility through indirect means such as manipulating search results.
Tags: Gaming Goblins, Check Point Research, illegal gambling in Brazil, gov.br domains