Two U.S. cybersecurity professionals, Ryan Goldberg and Kevin Martin, were each sentenced to four years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to obstruct interstate commerce by extortion for their roles in ransomware attacks. They and a third colleague, Angelo Martino, used BlackCat and Alphv to target numerous victims, collected large payments and laundered their proceeds; Martino is awaiting sentencing. #BlackCat #Alphv
Keypoints
- Ryan Goldberg (Georgia) and Kevin Martin (Texas) each received four-year prison terms after pleading guilty to extortion-related conspiracy charges.
- Angelo Martino (Florida) also pleaded guilty and is scheduled for sentencing on July 9.
- All three worked at cybersecurity firms—two as ransomware negotiators—before turning to conduct ransomware attacks against companies.
- They used BlackCat and Alphv, paid 20% of ransoms to operators, collected roughly $1.2 million from one victim and laundered their 80% share.
- BlackCat targeted over 1,000 organizations between November 2021 and December 2023; the operation was disrupted after a later $22 million ransom and the U.S. offered a $10 million reward for key members.