Russians jailed for UK internet attack

gallery

Three Russian men who demanded protection money from UK online businesses have been jailed for eight years apiece.

The three, Ivan Maksakov, Alexander Petrov, and Denis Stepanov, are said to have extorted over £2 million from British businesses by threatening to bring down their ecommerce sites.

Victims included Canbet Sports Bookmakers, who refused to pay a £5,000 ransom demand and had their site taken down during the Breeders' Cup Races, losing them more than £100,000 in lost business for each day of downtime. According to prosecutors, the gang made over 50 similar blackmail attacks in 30 different countries during their six months of activity.

"Malicious DDoS attacks on commercial websites can cause serious financial damage to the businesses affected, and are a major nuisance to internet users," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos.

"News like this should underline that companies who are the victims of attempted internet-based blackmail shouldn't pay up, but instead report the crime to the relevant authorities," continued Cluley. "Businesses who dole out ransom money are only encouraging hackers to try and extort more in future."

Russian authorities worked with the UK National High Tech Crime Unit, Interpol, and the FBI to apprehend the gang.

Email to a friend

Print this page