$BTC $ETH $BNB According to Cointelegraph (05/23), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a civil suit to seize over 24 million USD in cryptocurrency from Rustam Rafailevich Gallyamov – a Russian citizen accused of being the mastermind behind the Qakbot malware.
Case details
🔹 Criminal activity lasting 15 years:
Gallyamov operated Qakbot since 2008, expanding it into a botnet (thousands of infected computers) by 2019.
Sold access to ransomware groups like Prolock, Dopplepaymer, REvil.
🔹 History of seizures:
In 2023: DOJ previously seized 170 BTC and 4 million USD in stablecoins from Gallyamov.
Subsequently, this group shifted to using ransomware Black Basta & Cactus.
🔹 Money laundering method:
The amount of cryptocurrency seized this time (24 million USD) was converted through mixers, escrow wallets, and decentralized exchanges.
Impact of Qakbot
Attack targets: Businesses, banks, global government agencies.
Damage: Caused hundreds of millions of USD in losses through ransomware attacks.
