IP Threat Report
52.238.210.254
ABUSE.MOM — BEHAVE OR GET EXPOSED
Geolocation & Classification
Detection Signatures
| Signature | Description | Points | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 404 ratio 40-60% | Majority of requests returned 404 — enumeration | +15 | |
| 404 ratio >= 60% | Majority of requests returned 404 — enumeration | +25 | |
| Burst 10/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 14/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 16/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 17/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 18/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 19/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 20/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 21/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 22/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 22/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 26/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 46/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 6/2s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 61/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 63/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 67/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 68/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 69/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 70/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 71/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 72/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 73/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 74/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 76/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 77/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Burst 78/10s | Abnormally fast request rate — automated scanning | +35 | |
| Danger medium hits: 122 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 134 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 152 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 202 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 26 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 261 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 262 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 268 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 300 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 326 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 39 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 393 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 422 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger medium hits: 451 | Medium-risk: admin panels, config files | +60 | |
| Danger strong hits: 1 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +25 | |
| Danger strong hits: 104 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 12 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 26 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 44 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 52 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 53 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 60 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 66 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 78 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 79 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 82 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Danger strong hits: 9 | High-risk paths: shells, RCE vectors, exploits | +100 | |
| Probe 302→404 | Behavioral anomaly detected by automated analysis | +20 | |
| UA suspicious | Behavioral anomaly detected by automated analysis | +15 |
Observed Activity
Reconstructed HTTP requests from server access logs. Target domains redacted for security.
* Typical request patterns for detected signatures. Actual target domains are redacted.
Timeline
Network Provider
Recommendations
Actions taken & recommended
- IP 52.238.210.254 is blocked at application level (HTTP 403)
- Consider blocking at firewall level (iptables/CSF) to reduce server load
- Report abuse to the network provider via their abuse contact
- Ensure sensitive files (.env, .git, backups) are not accessible from the web
🔎 Path Enumeration Protection
Block scanning from 52.238.210.254: rate-limit 404 responses per IP, deploy a honeypot 404 page, ensure no backup files are web-accessible.
🌊 Flood / DDoS Mitigation
Implement limit_req_zone in nginx. Deploy CDN with DDoS protection. Configure SYN cookies and connection tracking to throttle 52.238.210.254.
🤖 User-Agent Anomaly Defense
IP 52.238.210.254 shows suspicious UA behavior. Block empty User-Agent requests. Implement JavaScript-based bot detection for sensitive endpoints.
Blacklist Status (DNSBL)
This IP was checked against major DNS-based blacklists used by mail servers and firewalls worldwide.
Checked: Spamhaus, SpamCop, Barracuda, SORBS, CBL, UCEProtect. Results may change over time.
Threat Analysis
52.238.210.254 has been assigned a threat score of 280/100 (Critical). This places it in the critical threat category. Immediate blocking is strongly advised across all network perimeters.
The following attack categories were identified:
📊 Threat Analysis
52.238.210.254 is registered in Des Moines, United States, operating on the network of Microsoft Corporation. This IP first appeared in our threat feeds after triggering multiple behavioral detection signatures. Our sensors captured 5,630 malicious requests from this address across a 13-day span, reflecting a sustained attack cadence of ~433.1 requests per day. Classified as a hosting IP, this address likely runs on a rented server or cloud instance. Attackers prefer datacenter IPs for their high bandwidth and disposable nature. The diversity of 3 separate attack methods suggests a comprehensive attack toolkit — likely an automated scanner that tests for vulnerabilities across multiple categories. Our records show 108 malicious IPs originating from United States, positioning it as a significant contributor to global threat activity. At 280/100, this is an extremely high-risk address. All traffic should be considered hostile.
This IP belongs to a hosting or data center provider. Malicious traffic from hosting infrastructure often originates from compromised VPS instances, rented servers used for scanning campaigns, or abused free-tier cloud accounts. Hosting providers typically respond to abuse reports within 24-72 hours.
Related Threats
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💡 DDoS Mitigation Approaches
Distributed denial of service attacks overwhelm infrastructure with traffic volume. Effective mitigation combines always-on traffic scrubbing, anycast network distribution, rate limiting, and the ability to quickly scale absorption capacity during attacks.
💡 Network Telescope and Darknet Monitoring
Network telescopes monitor large blocks of unused IP address space. Since no legitimate traffic should reach these addresses, all observed traffic represents scanning, backscatter from spoofed attacks, or misconfiguration — providing pure signal for threat analysis.