US authorities have recovered a 'majority' of the ransom Colonial Pipeline paid to reopen its critical fuel route
US law enforcement has recovered "a majority" of Colonial Pipeline's $4.4 million ransom payment to the Darkside hacker group, Department of Justice officials announced on Monday.
In a press conference, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco said the company cooperated with the Federal Bureau of Investigations to track most of the 75 bitcoins to a cryptocurrency wallet used by the hackers.
"The sophisticated use of technology to hold businesses and even whole cities hostage for profit is a decidedly 21st century challenge – but the old adage of 'follow the money' still applies," Monaco said.
Darkside was believed to be based in Russia, but the group effectively disappeared after the attack that led to gasoline shortages across the southeastern US.
Court filings said the government tracked 63.7 bitcoins, now worth about $2.2 million as the value of the currency has fallen substantially since early May.
