BlocksInform
According to United States Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray on Jan. 26, international law enforcement groups have dismantled the infamous Hive cryptocurrency ransomware gang. He said the transaction has retrieved more than 1,300 decryption keys for victims since July 2022 and prevented $130 million in ransomware payments. Officials cited an incident where a ransomware attack against a Louisiana hospital was countered by law enforcement, saving the victim $3 million in ransom.
Ghost servers were reportedly seized on Wednesday evening as part of an international enforcement operation led by the American authorities, German police headquarters in Reutlingen, the Federal Criminal Police of Germany, the National High Technology Crime Unit of the Netherlands and europol to monitor ransom payments, Hand it over to the victims, to dismantle the infrastructure of the network.
ISIS had been infiltrated by infiltrators since July 2022. Like Wray calls it, the application of the law has won "clandestine, Persistent Access" to the hive control panels since that time and had secretly assisted the victims in retrieving their belongings and locked devices without the hive's knowledge.
Hive was behind a series of notorious ransomware incidents, like the Costa Rican Public Health Service from April to May 2022 and the cyber attack on the social security fund. The group locked key digital infrastructure and required 5 million dollars in bitcoin () ransom payments for restoring services. More than 4,800 people would have missed their medical appointments within the first few days after the attack. Notwithstanding the successful enforcement measure, Wray also warned:
"Sadly, over the past seven months, we have found that only about 20% of Hive victims have reported potential problems to law enforcement. Here, thankfully, we have again been able to identify and assist many victims who have not come forward. However, this does not always happen. When we hear about attacks from victims, we can help them and others."
