State Department offers $10 million reward for information on Russian-linked Conti ransomware gang

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The State Department is offering a $10 million reward for information on the Russian government-linked cybercrime syndicate known as Conti, which is accused of conducting more than 1,000 ransomware operations against U.S. and international infrastructure since 2019. 

Five individuals – who go by the aliases of Target, Reshaev, Professor, Tramp and Dandis – are involved in Conti, which is also known as Wizard Spider. 

The State Department also released the first image of the man believe to be Target, who is wearing a black jacket, a white hat with ear flaps, and appears to be clutching a bottle of vodka or another drink.

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The State Department released this image of a Russian cybercriminal who goes by the online alias of ‘Target.’ (State Department)

The Conti group has targeted law enforcement agencies, 911 dispatch centers, municipal governments, and other critical infrastructure, usually by stealing their private files and demanding a ransom to get them back. 

The group infiltrated 27 government institutions in Costa Rica earlier this year and demanded a $20 million ransom. 

"We have our insiders in your government," the group told the Costa Rican government in May. "We are also working on gaining access to your other systems, you have no other options but to pay us. We know that you have hired a data recovery specialist, don’t try to find workarounds."

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Some of Conti's members pledged to "use all our possible resources to strike back at the critical infrastructures of an enemy" at the outset of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.