The FBI seized control of a notorious ransomware gang’s servers and websites, crippling the group’s ability to launch cyberattacks and demand multimillion dollar ransoms from its victims, the Department of Justice said Thursday.
The ransomware group, known as the Hive, has targeted some of the nation’s most critical industries, including the healthcare sector, Attorney General Merrick Garland said Thursday during a press conference. Hive infiltrates computer systems and deploys malicious software that renders systems unusable. The group then demands a ransom in exchange for an encryption key that allows the victims to access their systems again, Healthcare Dive reports.
In August 2021, Hive launched a cyberattack against a Midwest hospital, which forced it to stop accepting new patients and revert to paper records, Garland said. The hospital, which Garland did not name, was able to gain access to its systems after paying a ransom at a time when COVID-19 was surging, Garland said.
Since 2021 the group has extorted more than $100 million in ransom payments from 1,500 victims around the world. Read more.
