U.S. Bans Crypto Addresses Tied to LockBit Ransomware Group From Financial System
The U.S. Treasury Department's sanctions watchdog blacklisted 10 bitcoin and ether addresses allegedly used by ransomware purveyors, including two Russian nationals linked to the LockBit ransomware group. The group is accused of stealing over $120 million from 2,000 victims. Law enforcement agencies seized LockBit's website and are distributing decryption keys to victims. More than 200 cryptocurrency accounts tied to LockBit have been frozen, and authorities in the U.S., U.K., and EU have seized parts of the ransomware group's infrastructure. Some of the blacklisted addresses were deposit addresses for KuCoin, Coinspaid, and Binance. LockBit's victims included municipal entities and private companies worldwide. The LockBit ransomware operates in the 'ransomware-as-a-service' model.
