- FBI seized RAMP cybercrime forum domains on clearnet and Tor
- The operator confirmed the loss of the forum and called it the destruction of years of work
- Seizure of likely exposed user data risks identification and prosecution of cybercriminals
The notorious underground hacking forum RAMP, used to advertise various malware and hacking services, including ransomware, has been seized by the FBI.
One of the organization’s operatives confirmed the news in another forum, saying that the law enforcement operation destroyed years of hard work. It operated two domains, one on the clearnet and one on the Tor network – both of which were seized.
The clearnet version was destroyed and now displays the usual FBI banner: “Federal Bureau of Investigation has seized RAMP.”
The FBI remains silent
“This action has been taken in coordination with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section of the Department of Justice,” the banner reads.
At press time, the clearnet site was not available at all and instead returned an error.
On XSS, a separate hacking forum, a user alias “Stallman”, who claims to have been one of RAMP’s operators, confirmed that access to the forum had been lost:
“I regret to inform you that law enforcement has taken control of the Ramp forum,” they said. “This event has destroyed years of work to build the freest forum in the world, and while I hoped this day would never come, I always knew in my heart it was possible. It’s a risk we all take.”
At press time, there was no official confirmation from the FBI, but the domain name servers were switched to those used by the FBI in such cases, Bleeping Computer further found. This means that the police most likely have access to a treasure trove of RAMP user data, including email addresses, IP addresses, private messages and more.
Cybercriminals who were not careful and did not take precautions to hide their identity on the platform could now be identified and even prosecuted.
RAMP was launched in 2021 when other hacking forums, XSS and Exploit, banned the hosting and promotion of ransomware.
Via Bleeping Computer
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