US authorities say they've recovered a 'majority' of the $4.4 million ransom Colonial Pipeline paid to re-open its critical fuel route
Federal investigators say they have recovered a majority of the $4.4 million ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline.Recovery of ransom payments is extremely rare.US law enforcement has recovered"a majority" of Colonial Pipeline's $4.4 million ransom payment to the Darkside hacker group has been recovered, Department of Justice officials announced on Monday.
In a press conference, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco said the company cooperated with the Federal Bureau of Investigations to track down most of the approximately 75 bitcoin to a cryptocurrency wallet used by the hackers.Darkside was believed to be based in Russia but effectively disappeared after the attack that led to gasoline shortages across the southeastern US.Court filings say the government tracked 63.7 bitcoin, currently worth about $2.
"I know that's a highly controversial decision," he said."I didn't make it lightly. I will admit that I wasn't comfortable seeing money go out the door to people like this."attacks have increased in number and severity, and most payments are never recovered. This is the first digital asset seizure conducted by the DOJ's new cyber crimes task force.
FBI Deputy Director Paul M. Abbate said the Bureau has more than 100 investigations underway into operations like Darkside, and that his office is working with more than 90 ransomware victims across a range of critical infrastructure sectors.Sign up for notifications from Insider! Stay up to date with what you want to know.Sign up for 10 Things in Politics newsletter for the biggest stories in politics & the economy.
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