Extreme Threat
IP address 185.243.5.23 is a maximum-risk threat actor with a severe abuse history, presenting a threat level of 10 out of 10 based on 3,266 total abuse reports filed through automated honeypot sensors. Located in Hong Kong and routed through AS23470 (RELIABLESITE), this address has been linked exclusively to hacking activity, including intrusion attempts and exploitation of vulnerable services, with reports spanning December 2025 through January 2026. Despite a current activity frequency of zero, the sheer volume of historical reports and the nature of the detected behavior establish this IP as a persistent, high-confidence threat in any IP reputation lookup.
Abuse report data indicates that all 20 most recent threat reports attributed to 185.243.5.23 classify the activity as hacking, with every detection originating from automated honeypot infrastructure designed to capture unauthorized access attempts. The 61% confidence score reflects the certainty with which analysts attribute this activity to deliberate hostile intent rather than misconfiguration or benign traffic. With 3,266 cumulative reports on record, this address represents one of the most extensively documented threat sources in recent operational timelines. The reported timeframe of December 2025 through January 2026 situates this activity squarely within current monitoring windows, confirming it is not historical or stale intelligence.
The hacking classification encompasses a broad spectrum of intrusion methodologies, including vulnerability scanning, brute-force authentication attacks, and exploitation of unpatched services exposed to the internet. For network operators, an IP with this report volume suggests systematic, automated reconnaissance and repeated exploitation attempts against internet-facing systems. Even though current real-time activity appears dormant, threat actors frequently cycle through IP space and reactivate dormant addresses when opportunities arise, making sustained vigilance essential for any exposed service.
Site operators should treat 185.243.5.23 as a high-priority block candidate at the firewall or network edge, implementing fail2ban, CrowdSec, or similar rule-based mitigation tools to automate denial of service for reported threat patterns. Enforcing strong authentication policies—including key-based SSH access, multi-factor authentication for administrative interfaces, and strict password complexity requirements—reduces the viability of any attempted credential-based intrusion. Continuous monitoring of authentication logs for source addresses matching this IP range will help detect any renewed scanning activity. Keeping internet-facing software fully patched and running an intrusion detection system will further harden defenses against the exploitation techniques associated with this threat actor.