Aleksey Olegovich Volkov pleaded guilty to acting as an initial access broker and was sentenced to 81 months in prison for selling corporate network access to the Yanluowang ransomware operation. Federal investigators recovered chat logs, stolen data, and financial records linking Volkov to roughly $1.5 million in ransom proceeds and ordered restitution and forfeiture exceeding $9.16 million. #Yanluowang #AlekseyVolkov

A Latvian national, Deniss Zolotarjovs, was sentenced to 102 months for his role as an enforcer in a Russia-based ransomware organization that stole data from over 54 companies and contributed to hundreds of millions in estimated losses. He escalated extortion by analyzing stolen data and exploiting sensitive information — including pediatric health records — and was arrested in Georgia, extradited to the United States, and prosecuted by the DOJ and FBI. #DenissZolotarjovs #Conti

A Latvian affiliate, Deniss Zolotarjovs, was sentenced to over eight years in U.S. prison after pleading guilty to money laundering and wire fraud for acting as a ransomware negotiator and extortion specialist for groups including Karakurt, Conti, and Akira. Prosecutors say he helped extort more than 53 companies, causing at least...

Two U.S. cybersecurity professionals, Ryan Goldberg and Kevin Martin, were each sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to obstruct interstate commerce by extortion for their roles in ransomware attacks. They and a third colleague, Angelo Martino, used BlackCat and Alphv to target numerous victims, collected large...

Two former incident response employees from Sygnia and DigitalMint were sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiring to carry out BlackCat (ALPHV) ransomware attacks against multiple U.S. companies. They acted as BlackCat affiliates between May and November 2023, paying a 20% cut for access to the ransomware platform and targeting firms including a Tampa medical device manufacturer that paid $1.27 million. #BlackCat #ALPHV #Sygnia #DigitalMint

A third man, Angelo Martino, has pleaded guilty to participating in ransomware attacks while working for a cybersecurity company hired to negotiate with hackers. Authorities say Martino and two co-defendants provided confidential negotiation information to the BlackCat/Alphv group, received payments, and face up to 20 years in prison. #BlackCat #AngeloMartino...

A former ransomware negotiator, Angelo Martino, pleaded guilty to collaborating with BlackCat operators in 2023 to provide confidential victim negotiation details and help maximize ransom demands. Martino and two other incident responders also admitted to deploying BlackCat, extorting victims for about $1.2 million in one case, and authorities seized roughly $10...

The Cybercrime Center and the Baden-Württemberg State Office of Criminal Investigation have identified the alleged leader and alleged programmer behind the GandCrab and REvil ransomware groups and issued international arrest warrants. Both suspects are accused of organizing and developing ransomware operations linked to attacks including the 2019 incident against the Württemberg State Theatres; the case was built using cryptocurrency transaction analysis and broad international cooperation. #GandCrab #REvil