One of LockBit’s alleged ringleaders has been arrested in Ontario, Canada and is on his method to the US to face costs associated to ransomware assaults in opposition to at the least a thousand victims, based on the Department of Justice.
Dual Russian-Canadian citizen Mikhail Vasiliev is accused of being behind LockBit ransomware, which first emerged in January 2020 and has grown into one of the crucial extensively used variants on the earth. According to the DOJ, members of the ransomware group have demanded at the least $100 million in ransoms collectively, in the end efficiently extorting tens of hundreds of thousands from their victims.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco stated in an announcement in regards to the costs that the DOJ hopes the arrest sends a clear message to different cybercriminals.
“This arrest is the results of over two-and-a-half-years of investigation into the LockBit ransomware group, which has harmed victims within the United States and all over the world,” Monaco stated. “Let this be yet one more warning to ransomware actors: working with companions all over the world, the Department of Justice will proceed to disrupt cyber threats and maintain perpetrators to account. With our companions, we’ll use each obtainable device to disrupt, deter, and punish cybercriminals.”