Phuket police arrest four Russian nationals accused of running crypto-ransomware attacks

The police in Phuket stopped four pirates suspected of orchestrating ransomware attacks against Swiss companies and stealing millions in cryptocurrency.

The accused, all Russian nationals, would have deployed ransomware on the networks of 17 Swiss companies between April 2023 and October 2024, on February 10 report From the point of sale of local media, the Thailand country has declared.

For those who do not know, ransomware attacks involve pirates that lock the data from a victim and requiring payment – generally in crypto – to restore access. In this case, pirates would have used phobos malware, added the report.

The accused were would have Being part of the Ransian Ransomware 8base group and was also responsible for the flight of around 16 million dollars in Bitcoin to around 1,000 victims worldwide.

According to LT Gen Pol, Trairong Phiwphan, commissioner of the cybercrime investigation office, the suspects were sought by us and the Swiss authorities.

Thai police, in coordination with immigration officials, found them in Phuket and seized more than 40 evidence, including laptops, smartphones and digital wallets. Switzerland has already asked their extradition to face charges.

Meanwhile, Phuket has become the center of several crimes related to cryptocurrency in recent months.

Last month, a Russian man was attacked And deprived of $ 20,000 in a hotel in Karon, Phuket, in what the authorities described as a dispute linked to the crypto have become violent. According to information, the victim was faced with two Russian partners on an unstable cryptocurrency debt linked to previous trade relations in Russia.

In November 2024, a Ukrainian national in Phuket was strength To transfer $ 250,000 in attachment during the visit of friends. Local reports indicated that the victim was linked to cables and forced to carry out the transaction before the attackers would go.