Security News > 2021 > June > Ukraine Police Seize Cash in Raids on Major Ransomware Gang
Ukrainian police have carried out nearly two dozen raids targeting alleged associates of a Russian-speaking ransomware gang it blamed for a half billion dollars in cyberattacks and extortion that hit the United States and South Korea especially hard.
A police statement on Wednesday said 21 raids were conducted on the homes of suspects affiliated with the Clop ransomware syndicate in Kyiv and elsewhere, with computer equipment and about 5 million hryna in cash seized.
The most potent ransomware gangs operate with Kremlin tolerance, based out of reach of Western law enforcement.
The police statement said four Korean companies hit by the gang with the ransomware - which scrambles data that can only be unlocked with a software key obtained by paying the criminals - had paid ransoms.
Wednesday's raid "Is a continuation of the much more aggressive posture that law enforcement has taken against ransomware gangs this year," said analyst Allan Liska of the cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.
Clop is among the more prolific ransomware gangs, known for extorting victims by threatening to publish data stolen from them.