The Lockbit Russian-speaking hacker site has been taken offline by law enforcement agencies in several countries, including the National Gendarmerie. These hackers are responsible for several cyberattacks, including those against the Corbeil-Essonnes hospital, the Mobile Post Office and the Loiret department.
This may already be the coup of the year for law enforcement agencies fighting against cybercrime. The darknet platform of the hacker gang Lockbit is offline on February 19. It is on this site that cybercriminals displayed the name of their victim, announced the amount of ransoms and published sensitive data.
Anyone who would like to go to the home page will now see the message “ this site is under the control of the police “. More precisely, ” under the control of the UK’s National Crime Agency, in cooperation with the FBI and international law enforcement, during Operation Cronos “. Organizations from 11 countries are cited, including the National Gendarmerie. The agents even added on the site that they would provide more information soon.
The Corbeil-Essonnes hospital, Boeing, Nuxe, a long list of victims
Lockbit is by far the most prolific cybercriminal gang. This gang specializes in ransomware attacks: once hackers have infiltrated the system, they encrypt and therefore block all the data, and demand a huge ransom to make it accessible. If the victim does not pay the imposed amount, all of the files will be put online or resold.
The professionalism, media exposure and effectiveness of their malware has transformed Lockbit into a real crime enterprise, with its administrators, hackers who rent the software, trading and communication services. These hackers are responsible for 2000 hacks around the world. In France, they are particularly known for having attacked:
Many SMEs have also been impacted by the malware. Abroad, we can cite the Royal Mail (the British post office), the automobile supplier Continental, the California administration, the Porte de Lisbonne or more recently the Sandwich Subway chain.
The real impact of Operation Cronos on the group’s activity is not yet known, but law enforcement should soon provide more information. Let us remember, however, that these cybercriminals are most often housed in Russia and remain sheltered from the police forces who are looking for them.
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