Britain, the United States and Australia on Tuesday imposed sanctions on a Russian cyber firm and several of its employees, accusing them of "facilitating crippling ransomware attacks globally."The sanctions against Zservers and its staff are the latest in a series of coordinated actions by Western governments, which last year targeted the notorious ransomware groups LockBit and Evil Corp.Britain's Foreign Office said the six Zservers employees were part of "a prolific cybercrime supply chain" in Russia.
London also targeted a U.K.
front company, XHOST Internet Solutions.Foreign Secretary David Lammy accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of building "a corrupt mafia state driven by greed and ruthlessness.""It is no surprise that the most unscrupulous extortionists and cyber-criminals run rampant from within his borders," Lammy said in a statement.
"This government will continue to work with partners to constrain the Kremlin and the impact of Russia's lawless cyber underworld."Britain's Foreign Office said the Russian "cybercrime syndicate" was responsible for aiding worldwide ransomware attacks, accusing Zservers of providing "vital infrastructure for cybercriminals as they plan and execute attacks against the U.K."Meanwhile, the United States sanctioned two Russian employees, along with Zservers, "for their roles in supporting LockBit ransomware attacks."In May, Britain, the United States and Australia unveiled sanctions against the leader of the LockBit ransomware outfit, accusing him of extorting billions of dollars from thousands of victims.