As reported by The Record, the U.S. State Department offers up to $2.5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Belarusian hacker Volodymyr Kadariya.
Kadariya, also known by aliases “Eseb”, “baxus”, and “Stalin”, is accused of orchestrating malvertising campaigns that promoted using the Angler Exploit Kit and other malicious tools from October 2013 to March 2022.
According to the British National Crime Agency (NCA), the Angler Exploit Kit, at its peak, was responsible for 40% of all exploit kit infections, compromising around 100,000 devices and generating an estimated $34 million annually.
The malware dev known as “Eseb” allegedly trafficked stolen device access, login credentials, and banking information on Russian cybercrime forums.
In addition to Angler Exploit Kit, Kadariya and his associates are credited with pioneering the ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) model, offering ransomware like Reveton and Ransom Cartel to lower-skilled criminals. This model significantly expanded the reach of ransomware attacks, leading to a surge in global ransomware incidents.
As a red teamer, this case is a stark reminder that our techniques and strategies often lag behind the rapidly evolving tools cybercriminals use, such as exploit kits and RaaS.
Source: https://therecord.media/state-department-reward-for-information-on-belarussian-hacker-kadariya
Photo by Soumil Kumar.
