According to the US Department of Homeland Security investigators, they have prevented hundreds of ransomware cyberattacks and confiscated billions of extorted crypto since 2021.
Mike Prado, the deputy assistant director of the Homeland Security Investigations (HIS) Cyber Crimes Center, informed Bloomberg in an Oct. 4 report that United States government agencies were the primary targets, accounting for 21% of the disrupted breaches, the highest percentage of any business sector.
Since its establishment in 2021, the division has prevented 537 ransomware attacks and has identified and confiscated $4.3 billion in cryptocurrency that was taken through extortion payments on exchanges and hackers’ devices
Prado says he is employing a proactive strategy to mitigate ransomware attacks by “remaining vigilant” regarding cybercrime and the ever-changing strategies criminals use.
Internet traffic analysis, software vulnerability monitoring, and the identification of malicious activity are all tasks that agents perform to prevent ransomware organizations from exploiting an organization’s security.
The objective is to identify the imminent occurrence of assaults, in some cases before the breach, and avert them.
According to Prado, these actions have identified numerous “groups that we are monitoring,” with criminals operating outside the United States “consistently exploring methods to acquire cryptocurrency.”
Nevertheless, he stated that the method can be a double-edged sword, as it can be challenging to construct a case against hackers whose assaults are thwarted by HIS.
Prado asserts that in the event of an attack, HIS notifies government agencies, companies, and other potential victims that an extortion event is imminent.
HIS coordinates with agents from 235 field locations in the United States, local police departments, and other federal agencies.
Increase in Ransomware Attacks
Chainalysis discovered ransomware inflows increased by 2% in 2024, from $449.1 million to $459.8 million, in its Crypto Crime Mid-year Update on Aug. 15.
The total amount of crypto-ransomware payments recorded by the end of 2023 was $1 billion.
Simultaneously, the utmost payment size increased by 96% year over year in 2023 and 335% in 2022.
According to the blockchain analysis firm, the surge is likely the result of scammers collecting larger payments from victims.
The median ransom payment has increased from under $200,000 in early 2023 to $1.5 million by June 2024.
Chainalysis also recorded the most significant single ransomware payment ever in July, when a victim provided a $75 million payment to a ransomware group known as Dark Angels.
