In a phone call today, President Joe Biden told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that the U.S. will take "any necessary action" to combat ransomware, according to the White House.

Ransomware is a kind of cyberattack in which hackers lock people, businesses or organizations out of their own computer networks and demand payment, often in Bitcoin, to regain access.

A series of ransomware attacks has hit the U.S. this year, most recently against IT company Kaseya and the thousands of organizations that use its software. REvil, a Russia-based cybercrime outfit has demanded $70 million in Bitcoin to restore operations. That group was also behind a May attack on meatpacker JBS, which ultimately paid $11 million in Bitcoin to the group.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are used by ransomware hackers. Image: Shutterstock

What the REvil Ransomware Attack Means for Bitcoin

On Friday last week, Russian-speaking cybercrime syndicate REvil hit at least 200 US companies with a ransomware attack. The gang has since demanded $70 million worth of Bitcoin in exchange for restoring companies’ data.  The attack is the latest in a long line of ransomware attacks that have demanded payment in cryptocurrencies, notably Bitcoin.  REvil’s ransomware attack The REvil gang broke into information technology firm Kaseya.  The hackers then used the Miami-based firm to access and para...

NewsBusiness
3 min read
Scott Chipolina

REvil is not a state actor. But Biden says that doesn't matter.

"I made it very clear to [Putin] that the United States expects when a ransomware operation is coming from his soil even thought it's not—not—sponsored by the state," he told reporters, "we expect them to act if we give them enough information to act on who that is."

President Biden also told reporters that the two countries have "set up a means of communication" to discuss such matters regularly.

Biden had last month pledged that there would be consequences if Putin failed to act, but the Kaseya attack last week—the biggest of its kind to date—has tested his resolve.

When asked whether there will still be consequences, Biden answered, "Yes."

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