40.77.167.53📋 Copy

# IP Intelligence Briefing: 40.77.167.53/32

Classification: Microsoft Azure Infrastructure | Risk Level: Moderate (40/100)

## Executive Summary

IP address 40.77.167.53/32 resolves to Microsoft Azure infrastructure in Virginia, USA. The IP is associated with MSN botnet infrastructure (msnbot-40-77-167-53.search.msn.com). While the IP itself shows no direct threat indicators, it operates within a /24 subnet exhibiting high abuse density (0.5111) with 46 threat-sibling IPs identified.

## Ownership and Infrastructure

• Organization: Microsoft Corporation (ASN 8075)
• Infrastructure Type: Microsoft Azure Cloud
• Geolocation: Virginia, US (36.67°N, -78.93°W)
• Network Classification: Cloud infrastructure, firewalled with no active services exposed
• BGP Prefix: 40.76.0.0/14 | Route Stability: Confirmed

## Threat Assessment

• Risk Score: 40/100 (Moderate)
• Direct Threat Indicators: None observed
• Blacklist Status: Listed on 1 of 8 DNS blacklists
• Threat Persistence: Single observation, not persistently malicious
• Abuse Confidence Score: Not applicable (legitimate infrastructure)

The moderate risk score derives from neighborhood context rather than direct malicious activity. The IP is associated with Microsoft's crawler/bot infrastructure.

## Neighborhood Analysis

The /24 subnet (40.77.167.0/24) exhibits elevated abuse characteristics:

• Total Siblings: 90 IPs
• Active Siblings: 51
• Threat Siblings: 46
• Abuse Density: 0.5111 (high)
• Risk Distribution: 64 medium, 30 low, 0 high-risk neighbors

The IP shares network classification with multiple Microsoft Azure addresses in the range, including 40.77.167.0-40.77.167.6.

## Observation History

24 total observations recorded. Recent activity includes:

• DNS resolution confirmation to msn.com (June 2026)
• Geographic validation (ICMP blocked - unable to validate)
• Subnet abuse classification confirmation
• No ownership changes detected

## Recommended Actions

Status: Block (probabilistic recommendation based on neighborhood context)

Firewall Rules

• iptables: `iptables -A INPUT -s 40.77.167.53 -j DROP`
• nftables: `nft add rule inet filter input ip saddr 40.77.167.53 drop`
• nginx: `deny 40.77.167.53;`
• Cloudflare WAF: Block with expression `ip.src eq 40.77.167.53`
• AWS WAF: Add address `40.77.167.53/32` with description "IPDebrief risk 40"

## Notes for SOC Analysts

This IP represents legitimate Microsoft Azure infrastructure but operates in a high-abuse subnet. The recommendation to block derives from neighborhood context. Verify against internal allowlists for MSN bot services before implementing blocking rules. The IP is not a known attacker, spam source, or Tor exit node.

Intelligence Collected: [2026-06-28] | Data Sources: IPDebrief Intelligence Platform

This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Verify critical details independently.