U.S. charges two suspected major ransomware operators

By ERIC TUCKER and ALAN SUDERMAN
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two suspected criminal hackers have been charged in the United States in connection with a wave of ransomware attacks. That includes one that led to the temporary shutdown of the world’s largest meat processor and another that snarled businesses around the globe on the Fourth of July weekend. Attorney General Merrick Garland and other top officials announced charges Monday against Ukrainian Yaroslav Vasinskyi and Russian Yevgeniy Polyanin, alleging them to be part of the REvil ransomware gang. European law enforcement authorities also announced Monday that they’d arrested two other suspected ransomware operators with links to REvil in Romania.