Adrian Johnson
TLDR:
– A 17-year-old boy from Walsall in the U.K. has been arrested for his suspected involvement in the Scattered Spider cybercrime syndicate, targeting large organizations with ransomware.
– The arrest was part of a global investigation involving the U.K. National Crime Agency and the U.S. FBI.
Law enforcement officials in the U.K. have arrested a 17-year-old boy from Walsall who is suspected to be a member of the Scattered Spider cybercrime syndicate. This syndicate has been targeting large organizations with ransomware attacks and gaining access to computer networks. The arrest was made in connection with a global cyber online crime group that has also targeted major companies like MGM Resorts in America. The arrest, part of a coordinated effort with the U.K. National Crime Agency and the U.S. FBI, comes after the apprehension of another 22-year-old member of the same gang in Spain. Scattered Spider has evolved into an affiliate that delivers ransomware families such as BlackCat, Qilin, and RansomHub. They have shifted their focus to encryptionless extortion attacks targeting data from software-as-a-service applications. The arrest of the 17-year-old comes amidst other cybercrime-related developments, such as the sentencing of Scott Raul Esparza for running a DDoS attack solution named Astrostress, and sanctions imposed on members of the CyberArmyofRussia_Reborn for engaging in cyber attacks targeting critical infrastructure.
