Severe Risk
IP 204.76.203.212 is a critical-risk address associated with an exploited host operating from the Netherlands, generating 359 abuse reports across automated honeypot sensors over approximately five months of observed activity. The IP presents a threat level of 10 out of 10, with a dominant pattern of exploited-host behaviour indicating the system has been compromised and weaponised by threat actors for malicious activity, including web application probing and malware operations, without the knowledge of its legitimate owner.
Detection data shows 359 total reports attributed to this address, with 20 distinct automated honeypot sensors flagging its activity between September 2025 and January 2026. Recent categorised reports break down as 17 instances of exploited-host activity and 3 web application attack detections, suggesting the host is being actively used as an attack platform. Despite a low activity frequency score of 2 out of 10, the sustained volume of reports indicates persistent malicious engagement rather than a single isolated incident. Geographically mapped to the Netherlands and routed through AS51396 under the Pfcloud UG network operator, this address operates within a commercial hosting environment that may require provider-level intervention to remediate the underlying compromise.
An exploited host represents one of the most insidious threats in network security because the compromised machine performs malicious actions while appearing to belong to an innocent party. This IP has been documented conducting malware and exploit activity alongside web application probes targeting vulnerabilities such as those catalogued in the OWASP Top 10. The practical risk is twofold: the system owner faces potential legal and financial consequences for hosting malicious infrastructure, while potential targets receive what appears to be a routine connection request that may circumvent basic IP-based blocklists. The 79% confidence score reflects the strong evidentiary basis from multiple independent honeypot sources, though some uncertainty remains inherent in automated classification.
Site operators should immediately block IP 204.76.203.212 at the firewall or network edge to prevent any inbound connections from this address. Deploying or strengthening a web application firewall provides an additional defensive layer against the web app probing behaviour this IP has demonstrated. Hardening authentication on any exposed services, particularly enforcing key-based authentication over passwords and implementing account lockout policies, reduces the effectiveness of any follow-on brute-force attempts. Tools such as fail2ban can automate dynamic blocking based on suspicious login patterns. Organisations should also consider notifying the hosting provider, Pfcloud UG, so the underlying system compromise can be remediated and the attack platform neutralised at its source.
SE 
IR