Translated material
The US, UK and Australia have imposed sanctions against the leader of the hacker group LockBit. This is Russian Dmitry Khoroshev
The United States, Great Britain and Australia have imposed sanctions against one of the leaders of the LockBit hacker group, Russian Dmitry Khoroshev, the press service of the British government reported.
UK authorities believe the group was responsible for a quarter of all cyber extortion attacks that occurred in 2023. In total, thousands of people and companies around the world have become victims of hackers in recent years, the press release says. In particular, more than 200 British companies were attacked.
Sanctions against Khoroshev include a ban on entry into the country and the freezing of his assets if they are discovered.
A press release from the US Treasury said that sanctions against Khoroshev were imposed “for his role in the development and distribution of the LockBit ransomware.” The department also added that the US State Department announced a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest of Khoroshev.
In parallel, the US Department of Justice reported that Khoroshev, known under the nicknames BitSupp, LockBit and putinkrab, was charged with 26 counts. The indictment states that the hacker received at least $100 million from Lockbit's activities.
- The LockBit group gained fame in 2021. It uses a ransomware program of the same name that encrypts files on its victims' computers and demands payment to unlock it.
- In February 2024, the FBI, Europol and other intelligence agencies reported on a joint operation, during which the group's infrastructure was allegedly destroyed. In particular, an FBI representative told Bloomberg that law enforcement agencies blocked 11 thousand domain names that were used by LockBit and related structures to distribute the malware.
- Soon the hacker group announced that it had managed to restore the operation of its servers. However, according to the UK National Crime Agency, the group is now operating with limited capabilities, and the global threat from LockBit has been significantly reduced.