The $50,000 bounty that Europol believes to have issued to track down the administrators of Russia-based ransomware gang Qilin was actually just a telegram scam.
The fictional bounty news has tricked several cybersecurity news outlets to report that the reward will be paid to someone who can provide Europol’s information about two Qilin administrators known as Haise and Xoracle.
The pair likely would “coordinate affiliates and oversee the activities of the Frightor,” and Europol wanted information “that would directly lead to the identification or location of these managers.”
However, Europol confirmed to SecurityWeek that the expected reward was “fraud” and that the agency did not announce the prize money.
Not only that, the only social media channels run by Europol can be found on Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, X, YouTube and LinkedIn.
SecurityWeek is Rival gangs may have created fake prizes To undermine the reputation of your rivals, steal affiliates or create delusions within the gang.
Giraffe attacks national security of crypto
Qilin is a prominent ransomware gang that forces cryptography including Bitcoin and Monero through artisan ransomware.
In March of this year, Qilin claimed that he had stolen and sold data from the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including “private communications, personal information, declarations, etc.”
Read more: Rock Bit Ransomware Gang sends “Friendly Advice” to new FBI Director KashPatel
It also claims that it is a London targeted hospital that publishes stolen patient data and should not be condemned for its actions.
A member of Qilin told BBC reporter Joe Tidy:
Instead, the group claimed they attacked the hospital. In retaliation for Britain’s role in unspecified wars.
Qilin reportedly has not attacked countries within independent states, including Russia, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus and Moldova, with its affiliates taking 80% of its ransom payments back to less than $3 million.
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