The world of cybercrime was recently rocked by a major international police operation targeting the group of cybercriminals behind LockBit ransomware. This operation, called Cronos, involved Interpol, the gendarmerie and the police authorities of several countries, including France. Its objective was to dismantle the infrastructure used by these cybercriminals to distribute the dreaded LockBit ransomware, considered one of the most used in the world.
Through infiltration of the criminal group’s network, authorities managed to take control of LockBit’s services, putting an end to their criminal activities. More than 30 servers have been shut down, preventing cybercriminals from continuing their attacks against thousands of victims around the world. Two individuals linked to this gang were also arrested in Ukraine and Poland at the request of French authorities.
LockBit, which appeared in 2019, has been used to take tens of thousands of computers hostage around the world. Its attacks have targeted critical infrastructure, large industrial groups as well as public organizations, demanding ransoms of up to several million euros. In France, the South Paris region hospital center of Corbeil-Essonnes was the victim of a notorious attack in 2022, with a ransom demand of 10 million euros.
Operation Cronos symbolized a major blow to the lucrative ransomware market, demonstrating international law enforcement collaboration to combat cybercrime. This action highlighted the dangers of computer attacks and the importance of strengthening cybersecurity on a global scale.