US Officials Confiscate Digital Site Related To Blackcat Kidnapping Group

Illustration of a casino in Las Vegas who had become a victim of Blackcat. (photo: x @MGMResortsIntl)

JAKARTA - United States officials announced that they had seized a digital ransom website linked to the well-known "Blackcat" kidnapping group. It also helps dozens of victims to recover their data.

Blackcat - also known as ALPHV or Noberus - is accused of working with a prolific hacker group known as "Scattered Spider," which has plagued major businesses including MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment.

In a statement published on Tuesday, December 19, the US Department of Justice said it had "obtained visibility into the Blackcat kidnapping group's computer network" and seized "some websites."

There is no information about the arrest or action of Scattered Spider, a group believed by security researchers, consisting of at least part of a young English-speaking hacker in the West. The group acts as the spearhead for Blackcat, embedding data miscalculation software on victims' devices that can usually only be removed after a large ransom payment.

Cybersecurity analysis from the private sector said that the destruction was important because it should disrupt the crime of groups and networks of hacker partners they usually cooperate with to blackmail victims.

"This is a big win for law enforcement and the community," said Charles Carmakal, senior executive of US cybersecurity firm Mandiant, Google Cloud division. "ALPHV is one of the most active kidnapping programs (RaaS). They are working with Russian affiliates and English-speaking affiliates in the West."

A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment on the ongoing investigation. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) did not immediately reply to a message seeking additional details about the confiscation.

The statement said that the FBI had developed a decryption tool that could help up to 500 victims recover their data after the Blackcat confiscation. The statement said that "Until now, the FBI has worked with dozens of victims in the United States and internationally to implement this solution, saving some victims from ransom demands worth around 68 million US dollars (Rp1.05 trillion).