Russian law enforcement on Tuesday arrested Ilya Sachkov, co-founder and CEO of cybersecurity company Group-IB, on suspicion of treason stemming from sharing data with foreign intelligence services.
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While details of the charges have not yet been revealed, a court in Moscow ruled to detain Sachkov for two months as a preventive measure.
Authorities conducted searches at Group-IB's offices in Moscow that began early Tuesday morning and lasted until the evening.
A correspondent for the RTVI television network who was present at the scene said that at the entrance to the building there was a minivan and a bus where a man in civilian clothes was seizing various items from the Group-IB offices.
Ilya Sachkov, co-founder and CEO of Group-IB, was arrested on suspicion of committing a crime under Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which refers to treason and carries a maximum prison sentence of up to 20 years.
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As a result of this decision by the Lefortovo District Court of Moscow, Sachkov will be held until November 27, 2021.
An official statement today from Group-IB states that the company's lawyers are studying this decision, but did not comment on the charges against the company's CEO.
In the meantime, the company's management has passed to Dmitry Volkov, the second co-founder of Group-IB, whose regular role as chief technology officer is essential to the company's technological development.
Group-IB was founded in Russia but moved its headquarters to Singapore to maintain a certain level of autonomy. Since 2015, it has assisted law enforcement organizations (Europol, Interpol) with information, expertise, and statistics that have helped combat cybercrime.
While the reasons for Sachkov's arrest remain unclear, some Russian reports say Group-IB is under pressure from the country's Federal Security Service (FSB) for refusing to cooperate with the intelligence agency outside of official contracts or on political matters.
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In a 2019 interview, Sachkov shared his vision for a global company that didn't need approval from Russia's powers to run its business. Sachkov, who lived primarily in Singapore, also criticized Russia's indifference to hackers living in the country and targeting victims in other countries.
Information source: bleepingcomputer.com
