The US State Department is offering a reward of up to $10 million to anyone who provides information that could lead to the identification of the leaders of the popular ALPHV/Blackcat ransomware gang.
Another $5 million will be given to anyone who speaks out about people trying to participate in the attacks .
Specifically, the announcements from the State Department were as follows:
“The U.S. is offering a reward of up to $10,000,000 for information leading to the identification or location of any individual or individuals holding a key leadership position in the Transnational Organized Crime group behind the ALPHV/Blackcat ransomware variant.“.
See also: Hive ransomware: 10 million reward for information on its members
“Additionally, a reward of up to $5,000,000 is being offered for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of any person conspiring or attempting to engage in ALPHV/Blackcat ransomware activities.“.
The FBI has linked the ALPHV/Blackcat ransomware group to more than 60 breaches around the world in its first four months of activity, between November 2021 and March 2022.
It is also estimated that the gang has collected at least $300 million in ransom by September 2023.
The reward now being offered by the State Department for the ALPHV/Blackcat ransomware group is provided through the US Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program (TOCRP).
The State Department has created a dedicated Tor SecureDrop server that can be used to submit information about the ALPHV ransomware and other wanted hackers.
See also: Gary Gensler: Criticizes Bitcoin for its role in ransomware
ALPHV/Blackcat Ransomware
ALPHV/Blackcat emerged in November 2021 and is believed to be a rebrand of the DarkSide and BlackMatter.
The DarkSide operation was shut down in May 2021, after the infrastructure was seized by authorities following the attack on the Colonial Pipeline.
The gang resurfaced under the name BlackMatter, but ceased operations again in November 2021 and returned as ALPHV/BlackCat in February 2022.
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The FBI shut down ALPHV in December after the group's servers were compromised and its Tor sites were temporarily taken down
However, the ransomware gang recently added Trans-Northern Pipelines to its new leak site, with the company now investigating ALPHV's claims.
The reward is given for the discovery of the leaders of ALPHV/Blackcat, as this could lead to a significant reduction in the ransomware group's activity, as the leaders are usually the main organizers of the attacks.
See also: New JKwerlo ransomware targets users in France & Spain
Furthermore, the arrest of the leaders could provide important information about the group's operations, its techniques, and the tools it uses, helping authorities develop more effective strategies to combat ransomware.
Finally, their discovery could have a deterrent effect on other ransomware groups, showing that efforts to identify and apprehend criminals are effective and that cybercrime does not go unpunished.
In the past, rewards have been announced for information about members and associates of the Hive, Clop, Conti, REvil (Sodinokibi), and Darkside ransomware operations.
Source: www.bleepingcomputer.com
