- Two former cybersecurity professionals plead guilty to ALPHV ransomware extortion attempt
- They extorted $1.2 million from a medical device company; other attempts failed
- Faces federal charges with possible 20-year prison sentences; sentence set for March 12, 2026
The two cybersecurity experts accused of having ties to ransomware operators have pleaded guilty to at least one successful extortion attempt, as well as a couple of failed attempts.
In early November of this year, news broke of three cyber security professionals suspected of working as associates of the dreaded ALPHV (BlackCat) ransomware gang deploying encryptions against several US organizations.
At the time, a US federal indictment filed in the Southern District of Florida alleged two defendants – Ryan Clifford Goldberg of Georgia, and Kevin Tyler Martin of Texas, along with a third co-conspirator, hacked into the company’s network, stole data, encrypted it with ALPHV ransomware and demanded cryptocurrency ransom.
The indictment did not describe the two as cybersecurity professionals. However, local media said Martin worked at DigitalMint as a ransomware threat dealer, while Goldberg was a former Sygnia incident manager.
Both no longer work with these companies.
Sentencing in March
Now it appears the duo admitted to hacking a medical device company back in 2023 and later blackmailing it for $1.2 million.
They also allegedly admitted to trying to extort a Maryland-based pharmaceutical company, a California doctor’s office out of $5 million, a California engineering firm out of $1 million and a Virginia drone manufacturer out of $300,000. These attempts were unsuccessful.
“These defendants used their sophisticated cybersecurity training and experience to commit ransomware attacks—the very type of crime they should have been working to stop,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the DoJ’s Criminal Division.
Since all five companies were involved in interstate commerce, the case falls under federal jurisdiction. The payments were allegedly laundered through multiple cryptocurrency wallets to hide their origin.
The three risk serious imprisonment. They are charged with “conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by extortion,” “interference with electronic commerce by extortion,” and “willful damage to a protected computer.” The first two carry prison sentences of up to 20 years, while the third carries 10 years.
The sentencing is scheduled for March 12, 2026.
Via Cyber news
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