Russian couple on trial for large-scale ransomware attacks

In Malware Ransomware, News
January 19, 2025
Russian couple on trial for large-scale ransomware attacks
AI-generated. The Data Breach Times.

Two Russians are on trial in Brussels for infecting tens of thousands of computers with ransomware and raking in more than 3 million euros.

Belga News Agency reports:

The couple allegedly used the highly malicious Crylock ransomware to remotely lock computer files and hold some 400,000 victims for ransom. Crylock first appeared in Belgium in the spring of 2014, and the Federal public prosecutor’s office opened an investigation in 2016. 

V.S., a 40-year-old Russian man, and E.T., a 44-year-old Russian woman, were identified as the main suspects after years of detective work. The couple were arrested in Spain in June 2023 and extradited to Belgium. Police searched their Spanish home and seized 16 servers. 

Read more at Belga News Agency.

The Brussels Times reports that this is reportedly the first time that Russians have faced a Belgian court for large-scale cyberattacks.