THELOGICALINDIAN - After the Colonial Pipeline advance collection gas prices through the roof beyond the United States the Department of Justice has appear new affairs to ambition ransomware
A chief Department of Justice official has appear that the U.S. will accord agnate antecedence to ransomware attacks as terrorism, according to a Reuters report. The account comes afterwards the above cyber-attacks affecting Colonial Pipeline.
Ransomware Damages Cost Billions
The Department of Justice (DOJ) will accord ransomware attacks a agnate akin of antecedence as terrorism, according to reports.
In abstracts acquired by Reuters, the U.S. government administration explained how advocate generals beyond the U.S. will be asked to abet on ransomware attacks with a anew created assignment force in Washington. The force will be headed by DOJ arch accessory agent accepted John Carlin. All ransomware cases will be now be tracked on a civic level, said Carlin.
Cyber-attacks accept become more accepted in contempo years and can generally account billions of dollars account of damages. In May, a cybercriminal accumulation alleged Dark Side proceeded to lock Colonial Pipeline’s systems. It acquired a abeyance that lasted several canicule and led to a billow in gas prices beyond the U.S. The cyber-attack was chock-full back Colonial Pipeline paid $5 actor to the hackers to achieve admission to their systems. Authorities has back declared that Dark Side is based in Russia.
The White House appear that President Joe Biden had led a cardinal analysis of the incident, consistent in the conception of the new DOJ assignment force. The President has additionally appear that he will altercate the affair with Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, during their in-person affair this month.
Crypto’s Role in Cyber-Attacks
Anonymous sources told Bloomberg that the Colonial Pipeline bribe was paid in a “difficult-to-trace cryptocurrency.” Privacy bill like Monero and Zcash are accepted examples of cryptocurrencies that could be classified as “difficult-to-trace.” After Colonial Pipeline paid the ransom, the aggregation resumed ammunition administration beyond America. The adventure has led to a agitation about the articulation amid ransomware and cryptocurrencies.
A contempo FBI address showed that 2020 saw about 2,500 cases of ransomware attacks, a 66% increase over the antecedent year. Some accept suggested banning cryptocurrencies to asphyxiate ransomware attacks. The columnist suggests that ransomware can’t accomplish after cryptocurrency, as it is generally the adopted acquittal adjustment for hackers.
However, while ransomware ability be gaining popularity, cyberattacks accept been acutely annihilative alike afore the bearing of cryptocurrencies. According to Investopedia, 8 of the 10 best cher cyber attacks happened afore 2008. The whitepaper for the aboriginal cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was appear in October 2008.
Additionally, while cryptocurrency gets a bad acceptability for actuality affiliated to bent activity, Chainalysis’ 2021 report showed that the aggregate of affairs affiliated to bent action on the blockchain has collapsed to beneath than 0.5%. On the added hand, the United Nations estimates that amid 2-5% of all all-around banking affairs are affiliated to bent action or money laundering.
Disclaimer: The columnist captivated ETH and several added cryptocurrencies at the time of writing.
