Multiple countries collaborated with the United States to hack the ransomware group REvil and force it offline, CNBC reported Oct. 21.
Four things to know:
- REvil has been connected to several high-profile ransomware attacks, including the strike on the Colonial Pipeline.
- Tom Kellerman, head of cybersecurity strategy at VMWare and adviser to the U.S. Secret Service, said law enforcement stopped REvil from attacking other companies.
"The FBI, in conjunction with Cyber Command, the Secret Service and like-minded countries, has truly engaged in significant disruptive actions against these groups," Mr. Kellerman told CNBC. "REvil was top of the list." - A REvil leader who goes by the username "0_neday" said REvil's servers have been hacked.
"The server was compromised, and they were looking for me,” they wrote in a cybercrime forum. "Good luck, everyone. I’m off." - The collaboration to take down the hacker group comes a week after representatives from more than 30 countries met to coordinate their response to ransomware. The nations pledged to promote sharing information, disrupt the hacker groups' business model and ensure hackers are prosecuted.