Lockbit cybercrime gang disrupted by Britain, U.S. and EU

LONDON (Reuters) -- Lockbit, a notorious cybercrime gang that holds its victims' data to ransom, has been disrupted in a rare international law enforcement operation, the gang and U.S. and U.K. authorities said on Monday.

The operation was run by Britain's National Crime Agency, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Europol and a coalition of international police agencies, according to a post on the gang's extortion website.

"This site is now under the control of the National Crime Agency of the U.K., working in close cooperation with the FBI and the international law enforcement task force, 'Operation Cronos,'" the post said.

An NCA spokesperson and a U.S. Department of Justice spokesperson confirmed that the agencies had disrupted the gang and said the operation was "ongoing and developing."

Officials in the United States, where Lockbit has hit more than 1,700 organizations in nearly every industry from financial services and food to schools, transportation and government departments, have described the group as the world's top ransomware threat.

A representative for Lockbit did not respond to messages from Reuters seeking comment but did post messages on an encrypted messaging app saying it had backup servers not affected by the law enforcement action.

The FBI did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The post named other international police organizations from France, Japan, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland and Germany.

Lockbit and its affiliates have hacked some of the world's largest organizations in recent months. The gang makes money by stealing sensitive data and threatening to leak it if victims fail to pay an extortionate ransom. Its affiliates are like-minded criminal