05-11-25, 09:36 PM
Three former employees of cybersecurity incident response companies DigitalMint and Sygnia have been indicted for allegedly hacking the networks of five U.S. companies in BlackCat (ALPHV) ransomware attacks between May 2023 and November 2023.
28-year-old Kevin Tyler Martin of Roanoke, Texas (who pleaded not guilty), 33-year-old Ryan Clifford Goldberg of Watkinsville, Georgia (in federal custody since September 2023), and an unnamed accomplice face charges of conspiracy to interfere with interstate commerce by extortion, interference with interstate commerce by extortion, and intentional damage to protected computers.
Martin worked at DigitalMint as a ransomware threat negotiator (just as the unnamed co-conspirator), while Goldberg is a former Sygnia incident response manager.
The Department of Justice claims the defendants operated as ALPHV BlackCat affiliates, gaining unauthorized access to the victims' networks, stealing data, deploying encryption malware, and demanding cryptocurrency payments in exchange for decryption keys and promises not to leak the stolen information online.
