Attack on German companies: Worldwide hunt for hacker duo | News

Stuttgart – Seven years after the cyber attack on the Württemberg State Theater, investigators have achieved a breakthrough. Two suspected main culprits for the attack have been identified. A global search for the cybercriminals is now underway.

As the Cybercrime Center of the Karlsruhe Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Baden-Württemberg State Criminal Police Office announced, the two main perpetrators have been identified. One of the wanted people is said to have led the two hacker groups, the other to have programmed the malware.

130 companies in sight

The arrest warrants accuse the two men of attacking a total of 130 companies and facilities in Germany between 2019 and 2021. 25 victims transferred the ransom money. The total damage caused by the ransom payments: around 1.8 million euros.

But the true costs go far beyond that. The attacks caused economic damage in Germany amounting to around 35 million euros. One company from Baden-Württemberg alone suffered damage of around 9 million euros.

This is how the attacks work

The principle: According to the Federal Office for Information Security, criminals encrypt their victims’ data with malware. They only promise decryption in return for a ransom – usually in Bitcoin. Additional pressure: The perpetrators often threaten to publish stolen data on the dark web.

First group member already convicted

Already in January of this year, an important member of one of the two hacker groups, the infamous “GandCrab”, for computer sabotage and blackmail with manipulated software was sentenced to seven years in prison. As a supposed group member of the Cybercriminals He is said to have paralyzed the networks of 22 German companies and public institutions – including hospitals, clinics and the Württemberg State Theater in Stuttgart. The Stuttgart Regional Court was convinced that the state theaters had also transferred ransom money.