Tag Archives: Ransomware

In a new move carried out by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), multiple sanctions were handed out due to the accused’s ransomware activities. Ten Individuals and two shell companies known for extorting US businesses and infrastructure providers have been sanctioned, prohibiting all commercial activities with the designated parties – in cryptocurrency or otherwise. In tandem, the DOJ has also launched criminal charges against three...

A Canadian government employee thought to be involved in a series of crypto-related ransomware attacks has been extradited to the United States to face judgement. Sebastien Vachon-Desjardins – who worked as an IT consultant for Public Works and Government Services in Canada – is believed to have carried out attacks that led to approximately $28 billion in bitcoin being paid out by targeted individuals and enterprises throughout the Americas. Vachon-Desjardins Will Face...

Chainalysis has identified more than $602 million worth of ransomware payments in 2021. But the firm is confident that the figure is still an “underestimate” and that the true total for the year is likely to be much higher. 2021 Ransomeware Payouts A report from the blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis showed that at least $602 million worth of ransom payouts were identified in 2021. But the figures could be higher considering the fact that ransomware revenue in the first...

Ransomware is becoming a huge problem. In fact, according to a detailed report published by cybersecurity firm Sophos, cryptocurrency was involved in approximately 79 percent of the world’s ransomware incidents over the past 18 months. At the top of the list were the Conti and REvil ransomware attacks. Ransomware Is Changing for the Worse Sophos also believes that so long as cryptocurrency exists, it will likely be at the center of several other attacks in the future....

The United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released its annual report on criminal investigations, and cryptocurrencies played a starring role in the area of cybercrime. According to the IRS cybercrime unit’s report, more than $3.5 billion in cryptocurrencies were seized during 2021. This would make up to 93% of all seizures made in 2021. The Most Famous Crypto Cases Solved by The IRS: Among the most successful crypto cases closed by the IRS cybercrime unit are: The...

The United States continues to contemplate taking further action in regards to the growing crypto space. In the latest endeavor, the Justice Department has decided to create a task force to stop hackers from utilizing digital asset exchanges to conduct ransomware attacks. Ransomware on Exchanges As reported by Bloomberg, the new team’s goal is to target infrastructure that allows hackers to exploit their victims financially. Typically, this is done by freezing a victim’s data...

Just a day or so after announcing sanctions on crypto exchanges that engage in illicit transactions or the processing of ransomware payments, it looks like the U.S. Treasury Department is taking regulatory action against Suex, a crypto trading platform that has allegedly taken part in facilitating ransomware in the past. Suex Has Been Reprimanded According to the Treasury, ransomware is becoming a serious problem. Payments totaled more than $400 million last year alone,...

The United States Department of the Treasury plans to penalize cryptocurrency exchanges that assist in ransomware attacks. The first such sanctioned company would reportedly be the Czech Republic-based trading venue – Suex. Suex to Face Sanctions According to a recent report, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo alleged Suex of facilitating operations involving “illicit proceeds from at least eight ransomware variants.” On top of that, he added that 40% of the exchange’s...

How did the hacker escape the police? -He Ransomware. Jokes aside, the victims of the infamous REvil/Sodinokibi ransomware now have a reason to celebrate, as they can have access to their files again. A few hours ago, the cybersecurity company Bitdefender announced that it succesfully developed a tool to decrypt files altered by the REvil/Sodinokibi ransomware, returning them to their natural state. The Infamous REvil/Sodinokibi Now Has a Cure According to the announcement,...

Digital Mint is a company that provides tools and funds to companies that have fallen victim to bitcoin and crypto-based ransomware attacks. Digital Mint Is There to Help with Crypto According to security firm Cybersecurity Ventures, a business will fall victim to a ransomware attack every 11 seconds. In recent months, many of these attacks have demanded not cash or standard fiat, but rather bitcoin or other forms of crypto. One of the biggest – and most recent examples...