Canadian Sentenced 20 Years in US Prison For Ransomware Attacks

A Canadian gentleman was sentenced to 20 a long time in jail and ordered to forfeit $21.5m today for participating in the NetWalker ransomware assaults, said the Division of Justice (DOJ) Office of Public Affairs on Tuesday.

Sebastien Vachon–Desjardins, 35, of Gatineau, Quebec, was extradited to the United States in January this yr according to the extradition treaty among the United States and Canada.

When Canadian law enforcement officers arrested Vachon–Desjardins in Gatineau, Quebec, they executed a look for warrant at his home. 

For the duration of the lookup, police identified and seized $742,840 in Canadian currency and 719 Bitcoin, valued at approximately $21.8m at the time of seizure and $14.4m today.

“The defendant, in this scenario, employed complex technological suggests to exploit hundreds of victims in various nations at the height of an worldwide health crisis,” claimed US attorney Roger B. Handberg for the Middle District of Florida, referring to the COVID–19 pandemic.

“This circumstance is an instance of the dedication and tenacious get the job done of our regulation enforcement associates to deliver this kind of criminals to justice, no issue where they reside or function.”

Extra typically, Vachon–Desjardins will come pretty much a 12 months soon after the US governing administration launched a world-wide action towards the NetWalker cyber–criminal gang in January 2021, seizing $454,000 in cryptocurrency from ransom payments created by victims of 3 individual NetWalker attacks.

“The defendant identified and attacked high–value ransomware victims and profited from the chaos caused by encrypting and thieving the victims’ details,” mentioned assistant lawyer typical Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s criminal division, commenting on the ruling.

 “Today’s sentence demonstrates that ransomware actors will confront important outcomes for their crimes and exemplifies the Department’s steadfast determination to pursuing actors who take part in ransomware strategies.”

Further, according to a distinctive agent in cost, David Walker of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Tampa Subject Office environment, the ruling should remind the American community that the bureau is fully commited to combating cyber–threats with its technological abilities and regulation enforcement partnerships.

“Our cyber activity forces function vigorously to expose the cyber adversaries preying on United States citizens and carry them to justice.”

The FBI was also not long ago guiding the arrest of a former US National Security Agency (NSA) personnel who tried using to market labeled information and facts to a overseas government.

Some parts of this article are sourced from:
www.infosecurity-magazine.com