The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged a Russian national named Mikhail Pavlovich Matveev for his involvement in cyber-attacks targeting American infrastructure.
Matveev, known by various aliases such as Wazawaka, m1x, Boriselcin, and Uhodiransomwar, is linked to a series of cyber-attacks that affected a wide range of victims in the United States, including law enforcement agencies in New Jersey and Washington, D.C., as well as healthcare and other industries across the nation.
According to the DOJ, Matveev allegedly demanded a ransom of up to $400 million and succeeded in stealing $200 million. The department further stated that Matveev operated from Russia and utilized different variants of ransomware, including LockBit, Babuk, and Hive versions, to target critical infrastructure worldwide.
Kenneth A. Polite, Jr., Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, emphasized the importance of a global collaborative effort to effectively combat cybercrimes. He stated that the Justice Department is dedicated to taking decisive action against the “most egregious participants in the cybercrime ecosystem.”
Matveev has recently been the subject of attention and controversy within the cybercrime world. In 2022, reports revealed his departure from the norms of ransomware groups by insulting academics and journalists and publicly sharing exploit codes. He frequently posted details about his attacks on social media, in stark contrast to the cautious approach adopted by other ransomware groups facing increased scrutiny.
In a separate incident, the Philippine National Police successfully conducted an operation to rescue 1,090 individuals who had been smuggled into the country from other Asian nations. These individuals were coerced into supporting fraudulent cryptocurrency investments. The operation resulted in the apprehension and detention of at least 12 suspected members of the Colorful and Leap Group,, the crime group linked to the smuggling.
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