Security News > 2021 > April > US Takes New Aim at Ransomware After Most Costly Year
The Justice Department is taking new aim at ransomware after a year that officials say was the most costly on record for the crippling cyberattacks.
Formation of a task force of FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors is an acknowledgment of the growing threat posed by ransomware attacks, in which hackers lock up computer data and demand ransom payments in order to give it back.
Ransomware attacks have impeded hospital operations, led to the temporary closure of school classes and caused other chaos.
The Justice Department has brought indictments related to ransomware attacks, including a 2018 case against two Iranian nationals whose many victims included the cities of Atlanta and Newark, New Jersey and resulted in losses of $30 million.
Federal prosecutors have also a ccused North Korean computer programmers of launching a global ransomware campaign dubbed WannaCry 2.0.
As it imposed sanctions on Russia last week for election interference and the hacking of federal agencies, the Treasury Department said Russian intelligence had enabled ransomware attacks by cultivating and co-opting criminal hackers and giving them safe harbor.
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