https://techcrunch.com/2018/11/28/justice-department-indicts-two-iranians-over-samsam-ransomware-attacks/
By Zack Whittaker
TechCrunch
11/28/2018
U.S. federal prosecutors have indicted two Iranian nationals for creating
and deploying the notorious SamSam ransomware.
Faramarz Shahi Savandi, 34, and Mohammad Mehdi Shah Mansouri, 27, were
indicted by a federal grand jury in New Jersey on Monday on several counts
of computer hacking and fraud charges. The case was unsealed Wednesday,
shortly before a press conference announcing the charges by U.S. deputy
attorney general Rod Rosenstein.
"The Iranian defendants allegedly used hacking and malware to cause more
than $30 million in losses to more than 200 victims," said Rosenstein.
"According to the indictment, the hackers infiltrated computer systems in
ten states and Canada and then demanded payment. The criminal activity
harmed state agencies, city governments, hospitals, and countless innocent
victims."
Among those victims included the City of Atlanta, which was knocked
offline earlier this year, and projected to spend at least $2.6 million in
recovery following a SamSam infection. It was later discovered that the
city's computers had long been vulnerable to leaked exploits developed by
the National Security Agency -- later stolen and leaked online for anyone
to use.
[...]
--
Subscribe to InfoSec News
https://www.infosecnews.org/subscribe-to-infosec-news/
https://twitter.com/infosecnews_
