U.S. Treasury Sanctions Russian Exploit Broker Over Crypto-Funded Cyber Theft
TL;DR
The U.S. Treasury sanctioned a Russian exploit broker, Sergey Sergeyevich Zelenyuk, and his network for using crypto to buy and resell stolen U.S. government cyber tools, including proprietary tools from a defense contractor.
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Source: Bitcoin Magazine
The U.S. Department of the Treasury has sanctioned a Russian exploit brokerage network accused of purchasing stolen U.S. government cyber tools with crypto and reselling them to unauthorized buyers. In an announcement Feb. 24, the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Russian national, Sergey Sergeyevich Zelenyuk, and his company, Operation Zero, along with several associates and affiliated firms. Treasury alleges that Zelenyuk, operating from St. Petersburg, built a business acquiring and selling “exploits” — tools that take advantage of software vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to systems or extract data. Among the exploits obtained were at least eight proprietary cyber tools developed by a U.S. defense contractor for the exclusive use of the U.S. government and select allies. Full Story