Four Russians Arrested in Global Ransomware Crackdown

The U.S. Justice Department has charged Russian nationals Roman Berezhnoy and Egor Nikolaevich Glebov for their roles in operating the 8Base ransomware group, which utilized the Phobos ransomware to extort over $16 million from more than 1,000 victims globally, including hospitals and educational institutions. Their arrests were part of an international law enforcement operation involving 14 countries, which resulted in the shutdown of 27 servers linked to the group. Europol described 8Base as one of the most active ransomware gangs of 2024, known for aggressively deploying ransomware to extort high-value payments. The operation also led to warnings for over 400 businesses about potential cyber threats. Phobos, which has been targeting small to medium-sized enterprises, is considered one of the top ransomware threats for the year. The coordinated law enforcement actions highlight the ongoing global effort to combat cybercrime and ransomware attacks.