An indictment that was unsealed by US prosecutors this week reveals that US intelligence discovered that top Russian hackers utilized Bitcoin to mask their attacks on critical IT infrastructure in the United States.
Russia’s state-run hacking teams are responsible for the attacks, and it has been found that they have attacked several entities ranging from political campaigns to the 2018 WInter Olympics. Their targets appear to be very widespread.
The infamous “NotPetya” attack has also been attributed to the Russian hackers, which has been speculated before. The attack caused billions of dollars in damage. The attack gained worldwide recognition and asked victims to pay $300 in Bitcoin to decrypt their files. Even after some victims paid the ransom, they did not receive their files.
This comes as tensions between the US and Russia continue to rise. More and more studies have linked Russia to cyberattacks on the US and other counties. Many fear this will culminate into an all-out cyber war between the two countries.
