Three hackers from Serbia attacked Croatian ministry of labour and judiciary
Serbian police have arrested three members of the hacker group "INF Group" for ransomware attacks on institutions in the region, including Croatian state authorities.
Hacker group "INF Group" arrested: Croatian ministry and judiciary among targets
Serbian police have arrested three members of a hacker group known as "INF Group", which is linked to a series of ransomware attacks on state institutions and large companies in Serbia and neighbouring countries. According to a report by 24sata, among the targets were the Ministry of Labour of the Republic of Croatia and the Croatian judicial system.
Arrested were a 22-year-old from Belgrade, a 23-year-old from Zaječar, and a 17-year-old from Belgrade. The three are suspected of unauthorised access to protected computers, computer networks, and electronic data processing. The suspect from Zaječar is also charged with computer sabotage, whilst the minor suspect is additionally charged with extortion.
Serbian police describe this as the largest investigation into ransomware that has resulted in the arrest of a hacker group, and which simultaneously prevented the sale of stolen state and personal data on the dark web. It is suspected that the attackers demanded ransom in cryptocurrencies from victims as a condition for not publishing the stolen data.
According to Serbian police, the group compromised and encrypted systems or downloaded large quantities of data from them, including personal and sensitive data of citizens. The list of affected institutions includes the Republic Health Insurance Fund of Serbia, the public bailiffs database, records from the Foreigners' Affairs Bureau of Serbian police, and the Serbian Football Association. In addition to Croatian state authorities, systems of public transport in Belgrade and IT systems of several large companies in the region were also attacked.
Police intervention in time prevented the sale of compromised data from one state institution on the dark web, and planned attacks on several other state and private entities in Serbia were also blocked.
During searches of apartments and premises used by the suspects, police found items suspected of having been used in the commission of criminal offences.
Serbian police assessed that, according to the number of attacks and compromised systems identified to date, "INF Group" is the most active and operationally most successful identified hacker group that has operated in the region.
The investigation is ongoing. Police are seeking to establish all circumstances of the case, identify any accomplices, and secure digital evidence.
Source: 24sata