February 20, 2024 at 08:14AM
Law enforcement arrested two LockBit ransomware gang operators in Poland and Ukraine, seized over 200 crypto-wallets, issued three international arrest warrants, and unsealed indictments against two Russian nationals. The Operation Cronos task force coordinated the crackdown, resulting in the compromise of LockBit’s infrastructure and the development of a decryption tool. Europol gathered extensive data for ongoing operations targeting LockBit’s leaders, developers, and affiliates.
Key Takeaways from the meeting notes:
1. LockBit ransomware gang’s operators were arrested in Poland and Ukraine.
2. A decryption tool to recover encrypted files for free was created by law enforcement.
3. Over 200 crypto-wallets were seized after hacking the cybercrime gang’s servers.
4. International crackdown operation involved French and U.S. judicial authorities issuing three international arrest warrants and five indictments targeting LockBit threat actors.
5. Operation Cronos, coordinated by the UK National Crime Agency (NCA), led the global LockBit crackdown in collaboration with Europol and Eurojust.
6. Law enforcement took control of LockBit servers and dark web leak sites.
7. A free LockBit 3.0 Black Ransomware decryption tool is now available via the ‘No More Ransom’ portal.
8. Europol has gathered a “vast amount” of data about the LockBit operation for ongoing operations targeting the group’s leaders, developers, and affiliates.
9. LockBit ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) operation has been linked to high-profile attacks worldwide and has collected over $120 million in ransom payments.
10. Recent law enforcement operations also led to the seizure of servers and dark websites used by other ransomware groups such as ALPHV (BlackCat) and Hive ransomware.