U.S. Offering $10 Million Reward for Information on Conti Ransomware Hackers

The U.S. State Department has announced^[1]
rewards of up to $10 million for any information leading to the
identification of key individuals who are part of the infamous
Conti cybercrime gang.

Additionally, it’s offering another $5 million for intelligence
information that could help arrest or convict individuals who are
conspiring or attempting to affiliate with the group in a
ransomware attack.

The department called the Conti variant the “costliest strain of
ransomware ever documented.”

Conti^[2], the work of a
Russia-based transnational organized crime group dubbed Gold
Ulrick, is one most prolific ransomware cartels that has continued
to strike entities globally while simultaneously expanding its empire^[3]
by absorbing TrickBot and running side hustles that involve data
extortion.

After the syndicate expressed public support for Russia’s
invasion of Ukraine in February, it suffered a major breach^[4]
of its own after its source code and internal chats were released
on the public domain. But the leaks have done precious little to
slow it down.

According to the State Department, Conti is said to have
victimized more than 1,000 organizations as of January 2022, with
victim payouts surpassing $150 million. Last month, the group
claimed credit^[5]
for an attack on Costa Rica’s government networks.

This is not the first time the U.S. government has offered
bounties as part of its efforts to “disrupt and dismantle
transnational organized crime globally, including cybercrime” and
protect “potential ransomware victims around the world from
exploitation by cyber criminals.”

In November 2021, it offered similar monetary rewards for
locating criminal parties associated with DarkSide^[6]
and REvil^[7]
ransomware, which were used in high-profile attacks on Colonial Pipeline^[8]
and Kaseya^[9]
last year.