Russian-linked gang claims Federal Reserve hack – and threatens to release America’s banking secrets TODAY

A Russian-linked gang has allegedly hacked the US Federal Reserve and is threatening to release America’s backing secrets if they don’t receive a ransom.

The group, known as LockBit, warned that it will expose ’33 terabytes of juicy banking information’ if their demands are not met by 4:27pm ET today.

The ransom amount is unknown, but LockBit shared a statement on the dark web that suggested a ‘negotiator’ offered it $50,000 – which was allegedly refused.

The Federal Reserve has not commented on the alleged hack, but previously stated that ‘a cyber event could be extremely damaging.’

The timing of the alleged attack could also cause far greater implications, Carlos Perez, the Director of Security Intelligence at TrustedSec, told DailyMail.com.

‘This happening in an election year and given the ties of these groups to Russian intelligence agencies, one cannot ignore that any data leaked may be tampered and not be accurate, allowing for fear, uncertainty and doubt to be spread as part of a influence operation,’ Perez warned.

DailyMail.com has been in contacted with the Federal Reserve, but the central bank has refused to provide comments on the claims.

LockBit revealed the central bank had become its latest victim on Monday evening, sharing a statement on the dark web with a countdown until it releases the supposed stolen data.

‘Federal banking is the term for the way the Federal Reserve of the United States distributes its money,’ reads the announcement. 

The Reserve operates twelve banking districts around the country that oversee money distribution within their respective districts. 

‘The twelve cities which are home to the Reserve Banks are Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Richmond, Atlanta, Dallas, Saint Louis, Cleveland, Chicago, Minneapolis, Kansas City, and San Francisco.’

’33 terabytes of juicy banking information containing Americans’ banking secrets. You better hire another negotiator within 48 hours, and fire this clinical idiot who values Americans’ bank secrecy at $50,000.’

For comparison, 6.5 million documents can be stored on one terabyte. 

‘What caught my eye was a reference to negotiations,’ Alex Holden, the founder and chief information security officer of Hold Security, LLC told DailyMail.com.

Holden said he has personally dealt with a number of ransomware negotiations and  the gang’s response ‘suggests that Federal Reserve is not only aware of the situation but that they actually have a negotiator representing them.’

‘This is not a first time when a ransomware gang publicly shames negotiators over their approach,’ he continued.

The Federal Reserve oversees the country’s monetary policy and regulates banks and financial infrastructure.

A cyberattack of this magnitude could leave citizens vulnerable to identity theft relating to their social security and bank account numbers and other personal information.

If the information is released, any misinterpretation in market reports could cause stock values to crash and be leveraged by competing banks, both within the US and internationally.

‘This information may even be altered causing further panic and damage,’ Perez said.

However, other experts have suggested that LockBit’s claims are empty threats.

Cybersecurity analyst and security researcher Dominic Alvieri, who regularly reports on ransomware groups, said there’s ‘no proof’ that the gang hacked the Federal Reserve, adding that LockBit is ‘probably just blowing off steam.’

Brett Callow, a threat analyst at the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft, told the Daily Dot that ‘LockBit’s claim was likely complete and utter … nonsense, and a tactic designed to get its ailing RaaS [Ransomware-as-a-Service] back into the limelight.’

While other cybersecurity experts stated that if the Federal Reserve was hacked ‘it would be DEFCON2’ and officials would need to be more concerned about a drone strike.

‘For now, the time is ticking down for us to find out the impact of this event or if it is a hoax,’ Holden said.

LockBit has carried out attacks on more than 2,500 victims worldwide since 2020, 1,800 in the US alone, which earned them as much as $150 million in total ransom.

LockBit is a ‘double extortion’ gang that not only encrypts user data but threatens to release it if their ransom demands, which can run in the millions, are not met. 

The alleged attack comes after LockBit previously staged an attack on Boeing mere days after it carried out a cyberattack on the US Treasury in November.

LockBit claimed to have obtained ‘a tremendous amount’ of sensitive data from Boeing in October and warned it would release the information if the aerospace giant didn’t pay a ransom by November 2.

A Boeing spokesperson told DailyMail.com at the time that ‘elements of Boeing’s parts and distribution business’ were impacted by the cyberattack and the hackers had released the information.

‘We’ve seen back-to-back attacks against a massive defense contractor and a massive financial institution. It’s concerning,’ Callow told DailyMail.com at the time.

‘Sooner or later, an attack will impact something totally critical and cause a serious meltdown,’ he added.

The US Department of State finally unmasked LockBit’s leader in May, identifying him as 31-year-old Russian national Dmitry Yuryevich Khoroshev.

The revelation came after the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) seized and shut down the cybercriminal’s site in February ‘which represents one of the most prolific ransomware variants across the globe,’ FBI Director Christopher A. Wray said.

In a report last year, cybersecurity firm Trend Micro called the group ‘one of the most professional organized criminal gangs in the criminal underground.’