The US State Department is offering up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of senior members of a Russian-speaking ransomware gang that forced major US fuel operator Colonial Pipeline to shut down in May.
The announcement Thursday from State Department spokesperson Ned Price also included an offer of $5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of anyone who conspires to participate in a hack involving so-called DarkSide ransomware, which was used in the Colonial Pipeline incident.It's the latest effort by the Biden administration to put pressure on cybercriminals that have extorted millions of dollars from US companies and threatened critical infrastructure.
It also put ransomware higher on the national security agency for the Biden administration, which since the incident has issued multiple cybersecurity policy directives.The pipeline company, which delivers an estimated 45% of fuel consumed on the East Coast, paid the hackers $4.4 million to unlock the computers. The Justice Department was able to recover $2.3 million of that money by seizing cryptocurrency assets.
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