Money

$2.3 million dollars worth of bitcoins recovered from ransomware attack

Published

5 years ago

June 8, 2021

U.S authorities have managed to recover millions of dollars in cryptocurrency, that was paid in ransom to the Colonial Pipeline Hackers.

Last month, America’s key East Coast gas pipeline was taken offline by a Russian hacker group known as “Darkside”.

The investigation was led by the FBI, in association with Colonial, and the Justice Department is expected to provide more details on the matter in the next few hours

“Earlier today, the Department of Justice has found and recaptured the majority of the ransom Colonial paid to the DarkSide network in the wake of last month’s ransomware attack. Ransomware attacks are always unacceptable — but when they target critical infrastructure, we will spare no effort in our response,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said at a news conference on Monday afternoon local time.

“Today, we turned the tables on DarkSide,”

“By going after the entire ecosystem that fuels ransomware and digital extortion attacks, including criminal proceeds in the form of digital currency, we will continue to use all of our tools, and all of our resources to increase the cost and the consequences of ransomware attacks and other cyber-enabled attacks.”

Colonial initially complied with the $4.4 million ransom demand, due to the impact of the outage, and the uncertainty surrounding when operations would be able to resume.

However, behind closed doors, it’s now apparent that the company was working hand-in-hand with the FBI, to track the cryptocurrency wallet used by the hackers.

The full amount of the seizure from DarkSide, DOJ officials said Monday, was 63.7 bitcoins valued at approximately $2.3 million.

This follows previous reports that U.S officials were looking for holes in the hackers’ operations so they could identify the group behind the attack.

US to treat ransomware attacks with same priority as terrorism

After the cyberattack, President Joe Biden signed an executive order to strengthen cybersecurity defences across the US.

Earlier reports found that internal guidance sent to U.S. attorney’s offices across the America stated information about ransomware investigations in the field should be centrally coordinated with a recently created task force in Washington.

“It’s a specialised process to ensure we track all ransomware cases regardless of where it may be referred in this country,”
SAID JOHN CARLIN, PRINCIPLE ASSOCIATE DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL AT THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT.

The cyber hack caused a shutdown lasting several days, led to a spike in gas prices, panic buying and localised fuel shortages in the southeast.

Joseph Blount is the CEO of the Colonial Pipeline. He told the Wall Street Journal the ransom was a “highly controversial decision”. But he conceded it “was the right thing to do for the country”.

The 8,900 kilometre pipeline carries 2.5 million barrels a day, or 45 percent of the east coast’s supply of critical fuel supplies.

Up Next

Apple’s new features to rival zoom, major software updates for new iPhone

Don't Miss

Why Apple wants its employees BTW ASAP

William Howard

William is an Executive News Producer at TICKER NEWS, responsible for the production and direction of news bulletins. William is also the presenter of the hourly Weather + Climate segment. With qualifications in Journalism and Law (LLB), William previously worked at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) before moving to TICKER NEWS. He was also an intern at the Seven Network's 'Sunrise'. A creative-minded individual, William has a passion for broadcast journalism and reporting on global politics and international affairs.

Click to comment

Money

Global markets outperform US stocks by largest margin as AI tech rallies in 2025

Global markets outperform US stocks in 2025, marking widest gap since 2009 as international gains surge

Published

4 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Harvey Vargas

Global markets outperform US stocks in 2025, marking the widest gap since 2009 as international gains surge

In Short:
– Global markets outperformed U.S. stocks in 2025, with international equities showing significant gains.
– Helen Jewell highlighted that international performance was key, aided by the U.S. dollar’s decline.

In 2025, U.S. investors watching AI stocks closely may have missed the bigger picture: international markets delivered their strongest performance against U.S. equities in over three decades. While the S&P 500 rose just 15%, foreign markets outperformed by more than 10 percentage points, led by South Korea, Peru, and other European nations.

Helen Jewell, BlackRock’s CIO, highlighted that the dollar’s 13% decline earlier in the year further amplified returns for Americans holding foreign assets. This marked the widest performance gap since 2009 and reminded investors of the value of diversification beyond domestic tech giants.

Continued Tech Rally

Nvidia, Tesla, and Palantir Technologies emerged as the most-viewed ticker pages on Yahoo Finance in 2025. Nvidia alone attracted 250 million page views, while Palantir soared an eye-popping 140% for the year. Despite this hype, the S&P 500 lagged behind global peers, showing that concentrated U.S. tech gains can mask broader market opportunities.

U.S. stocks saw a boost after Micron Technology exceeded earnings expectations, jumping 10% on strong AI-related demand. The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund also gained 1.5%, driven by semiconductor optimism. However, analysts warn investors to avoid over-concentration in U.S. tech, even if AI-driven rallies persist into 2026.

As portfolios prepare for next year, the key question is whether semiconductor demand will expand beyond AI applications. Diversification remains essential, balancing excitement over tech gains with the risks of narrow market exposure.

Money

Australia’s sharemarket set for weakest annual return in three years

Australia’s sharemarket set for weakest return in three years; gains from gold and critical minerals offset blue-chip losses.

Published

1 day ago

December 22, 2025

Harvey Vargas

Australia’s sharemarket set for weakest return in three years; gains from gold and critical minerals offset blue-chip losses.

Australia’s sharemarket is on track for its weakest annual return in three years, with the S&P/ASX 200 Index expected to finish 2025 up around 6 per cent. Investors are feeling the impact of major losses from blue-chip companies, including Commonwealth Bank and CSL, which have dragged overall performance.

Despite the slow year, certain sectors provided a boost. Gains were largely driven by surging gold prices and rising interest in critical minerals, helping offset some of the losses from larger companies.

Smaller companies in the resources sector outperformed their larger counterparts, highlighting a shift in investor focus towards niche opportunities and high-demand commodities.

Subscribe to never miss an episode of Ticker – https://www.youtube.com/@weareticker

#AustraliaShares #ASX200 #StockMarket2025 #InvestingAustralia #GoldSurge #ResourcesBoom #MarketUpdate #FinanceNews

Money

US stocks surge amid AI hype despite market volatility

US stock market bounced back, S&P 500 up 16% in 2023, driven by AI excitement amid policy uncertainties.

Published

1 day ago

December 22, 2025

Harvey Vargas

US stock market bounced back, S&P 500 up 16% in 2023, driven by AI excitement amid policy uncertainties.

The US stock market has experienced a rollercoaster year, with the S&P 500 nearly entering a bear market in April due to tariff concerns. Investor sentiment shifted following policy changes from President Trump, setting the stage for a dramatic rebound.

By June, the S&P 500 was hitting new records, fueled by excitement over artificial intelligence and its impact on the tech sector. Corporate profit forecasts improved, contributing to an overall annual gain of 16%, despite ongoing market fluctuations.

Yet, the S&P 500 still trails international markets, reflecting lingering policy uncertainties in the US.

Investors are watching closely to see how domestic and global factors will shape the next year.

Subscribe to never miss an episode of Ticker – https://www.youtube.com/@weareticker

#USStocks #SP500 #StockMarket #Investing #AIStock #MarketVolatility #CorporateProfits #GlobalMarkets