In the US, a Russian was jailed for cyberattacks and fraud

Ruslan Astamirov is accused of involvement in the repeated use of LockBit ransomware.

Ruslan Astamirov, a Russian citizen, was arrested in the United States and accused of conspiring to launch LockBit ransomware attacks against American and foreign companies. This was announced on June 15 by the US Department of Justice.

“The Justice Department today charged a Russian citizen in connection with repeated use of the LockBit program, as well as other cyber attacks on computer systems in the United States, Asia, Europe and Africa,” the department said in a statement. a statement.

It was noted that the 20-year-old Astamirov is a native of Chechnya.

According to investigators, he conspired with other members of the LockBit ransomware campaign to commit fraud from August 2020 to March 2023. Astamirov directly carried out at least five attacks on computer systems in the United States and abroad.

The Russian is the third defendant in the case and the second to be jailed.

The Justice Department determined that the LockBit ransomware variant first appeared in January 2020. Its authors have carried out more than 1,400 attacks in the United States and around the world and received at least tens of millions dollars in actual ransom payments made in cryptocurrencies.

Astamirov was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to intentionally destroy secure computers and submit ransom demands. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on the first charge and five years in prison on the second.

It can be recalled that in early May, the US Department of Justice charged Russian citizen Felix Medvedev with doing business without a license and laundering $150 million.

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