Microsoft was primarily concerned that Trickbot’s operators would use the botnet to disrupt the imminent US election through ransomware. Attackers could lock down systems maintaining voter rolls or reporting on election night results, the company said. The disruption could also help thwart attempts to hijack bank accounts and threaten critical institutions using ransomware like Ryuk, which has been linked to the death of a German hospital patient as well as attacks against cities and even newspapers.

This doesn’t appear to have been coordinated with the US government. Anonymous officials talking to the New York Times claimed that Cyber Command had already