February 1, 2023
The FBI has directed that more ransomware victims contact them because it is their responsibility to crack down on notorious cybercriminals.
When it comes to ransomware incidents, victims of ransomware and other malicious cyber incidents should have no fear because the FBI is on the case. There should be no fear of giving the agents too much network access or of the attackers leaking sensitive information.
The call comes after the recent successful infiltration of the Hive Ransomware gang’s darknet operations, in which officials stole and distributed decryption keys to hundreds of victims in the middle of an attack and ultimately shut down some of the gang’s key digital infrastructure.
During a press conference to discuss the campaign, FBI Director Christopher Wray estimated that only 20% of Hive victims reported potential problems to law enforcement during the bureau’s seven-month operation.
As a result, the officials’ prompt assistance is intended to encourage more ransomware targets to contact the FBI when they are attacked.
The FBI affirmed its stance with a post on its website saying, “The FBI does not support paying a ransom in response to a ransomware attack. Paying a ransom doesn’t guarantee you or your organization will get any data back. It also encourages perpetrators to target more victims and offers an incentive for others to get involved in this type of illegal activity.”
The sources for this piece include an article in Axios.
