By Steve Neavling
The Justice Department dismantled a ransomware gang called Hive that had victimized more than 1,500 people in 80 different countries and collected more than $100 million in ransomware payments.
The DOJ announced the months-long campaign during a news conference Thursday, saying the group had targeted hospitals, school districts, financial firms, and critical infrastructure.
Since July 2022, the FBI had hacked Hive’s computer networks, captured its decryption keys and offered them to victims worldwide. As a result, the campaign prevented victims from paying $130 million in ransom.
“Last night, the Justice Department dismantled an international ransomware network responsible for extorting and attempting to extort hundreds of millions of dollars from victims in the United States and around the world,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said. “Cybercrime is a constantly evolving threat. But as I have said before, the Justice Department will spare no resource to identify and bring to justice, anyone, anywhere, who targets the United States with a ransomware attack. We will continue to work both to prevent these attacks and to provide support to victims who have been targeted. And together with our international partners, we will continue to disrupt the criminal networks that deploy these attacks.”
Hive extorted businesses and others by encrypting their data and demanding cryptocurrency payments.
“The coordinated disruption of Hive’s computer networks, following months of decrypting victims around the world, shows what we can accomplish by combining a relentless search for useful technical information to share with victims with investigation aimed at developing operations that hit our adversaries hard,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said. “The FBI will continue to leverage our intelligence and law enforcement tools, global presence, and partnerships to counter cybercriminals who target American business and organizations.”
The campaign came after the Justice Department launched a ransomware task force in 2021.
“This action demonstrates the Department of Justice’s commitment to protecting our communities from malicious hackers and to ensuring that victims of crime are made whole,” Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said. “Moreover, we will continue our investigation and pursue the actors behind Hive until they are brought to justice.”
