U.S. offers reward for information on Hive ransomware leaders
The U.S. offered a reward for information on the leaders of the extortionist group Hive (photo: GettyImages)
The U.S. State Department is offering $10 million for information on the leaders of the ransomware group Hive, according to Reuters.
In response to the growing threat posed by the hacking group Hive, specializing in extortion, the U.S. State Department is announcing a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of key leaders of this criminal organization.
"The Hive ransomware variant targeted victims in over 80 countries, including the United States. Beginning in late July 2022, the FBI penetrated Hive’s computer networks, obtained its decryption keys, and offered them to victims worldwide, preventing victims from having to pay up to $130 million in ransoms demanded," - stated the State Department.
Crimes of Hive
In May 2021, hackers from Hive conducted an attack on the Colonial Pipeline, one of the largest fuel pipelines in the U.S. The operators briefly suspended fuel supplies to the East Coast and paid the hackers millions of dollars. Later, part of this sum was recovered through U.S. efforts.
In 2022, cybercriminals launched an attack on Partnership HealthPlan, an American medical organization, stealing 850,000 records with patients' data and 400 GB of confidential files from the server.
