US Treasury sanctions 2 affiliates of ransomware group LockBit

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The US Treasury Department announced Tuesday that it has imposed sanctions on two individuals who are affiliates of the Russia-based ransomware group LockBit.

The Treasury said in a statement that Russia continues to offer safe harbor for cybercriminals and groups such as LockBit that launch ransomware attacks against the US, its allies and partners, adding the ransomware attacks targeted critical infrastructure including hospitals, schools and financial institutions.

LockBit was responsible for the November 2023 ransomware attack against the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China’s US broker-dealer, it added.

The sanctioned individuals are Ivan Gennadievich Kondratiev and Artur Sungatov, both Russian nationals and affiliated with LockBit.

"LockBit is known for its double extortion tactics, where its cybercriminals exfiltrate vast amounts of data from its victims before encrypting the victims’ computer systems and demanding ransom payments," said the statement.

"LockBit was the most deployed ransomware variant globally in 2022 and remains prolific today," it added.

Law enforcement authorities from 10 countries disrupted the ransomware criminal operation behind LockBit, Europol said earlier. They took down 34 servers in the Netherlands, Germany, Finland, France, Switzerland, Australia, the US and the UK.