As outlined in the Presidential Executive Order on the issue, practical steps are beginning to emerge on how the United States is trying to deal with ransomware attacks.
Reuters has reported that could be interpreted as a response by the United States government to the increasingly frequent and problematic ransomware attacks.
It was stated that a dedicated team has already been set up in Washington to deal with the threat of ransomware attacks at the highest level in a coordinated way.
The United States Department of Justice sent a detailed letter to the prosecutors of the Member States yesterday. The work of local authorities will support the unit. They will channel all relevant information to the center to ensure that the team can fight the threat from cyberspace as effectively as possible.
The series of measures outlined also means that the US intends to treat ransomware attacks on the same level as terrorism. This level of centralization is typically only applied to the latter.
Under the new set-up, local investigative authorities will have to share with Washington not only facts directly related to ransomware attacks but also information on online money laundering services used for illegal trade, among other things.
The letter mentions the Colonial Pipeline case by name, identifying it as an action that has fundamentally threatened the country's functioning.
This attack knocked out a significant part of the US fuel supply system for a little over a week, prompting the new president to issue a presidential order indicating that he wishes to see significant changes to improve the country's defenses.
The Biden administration intends to use its intelligence arsenal to get closer to foreign perpetrators.
