THELOGICALINDIAN - The Department of Justice was able to restore the funds of hospitals in Kansas and Colorado that had afresh been victims of ransomware attacks
The U.S. Justice Department has bedeviled and alternate about bisected a actor dollars to two hospitals in Kansas and Colorado afterwards they were targeted by North Korean hackers. The medical centers were attacked in May 2024 and April 2022 and paid their ransoms in Bitcoin.
Justice Department Seizes Illicit Funds
The United States is angry aback adjoin North Korean cyber attacks.
The Department of Amends (DOJ) announced today that it had retrieved about $500,000 from North Korean hackers. The bedeviled funds accept been alternate to the bloom affliction providers from which they were originally taken.
According to the statement, in May 2024 and April 2022, state-sponsored North Korean hackers deployed a new ache of ransomware alleged “Maui” to lock the servers of two hospitals in Kansas and Colorado. The medical centers had to appropriately pay ransoms of about $100,000 and $120,000 in Bitcoin to the cyber abyss to achieve use of their computers.
The Kansas hospital contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation, which was again able to trace the cryptocurrency bribe to money launderers in China. In May 2022, the FBI managed to accretion admission to the accepting accounts, appropriate the funds, and eventually acknowledgment the money to the victim institutions.
“Reporting cyber incidents to law administration and allied with investigations not alone protects the United States, it is additionally acceptable business,” declared Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen. “The agreement to these victims of the bribe shows why it pays to assignment with law enforcement.”
It is not bright area the added $280,000 bedeviled came from, nor is it bright how Bitcoin’s bulk changes afflicted the all-embracing bulk seized. The account additionally did not acknowledgment any arrests.
North Korean hackers accept been an alive force in the cryptocurrency space. At the alpha of the year the state-sponsored hacker syndicate Lazarus Group exploited the Ronin arch for over $551.8 million; some associates of the crypto amplitude believe that all arresting crypto organizations should be advised targets.
Disclaimer: At the time of writing, the columnist of this allotment endemic ETH and several added cryptocurrencies.
