US Offers $10 Million Reward for Information on Russians Indicted on Cyber Crimes Against 21 States

Federal authorities alleged the cyberattacks contributed to at least $61 million in damages.

The U.S. State Department is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information on, or the locations of, associates of three Russian nationals suspected of coordinating widespread cyberattacks against U.S. companies, causing millions in damages. Courtesy of the U.S. Department of State

The U.S. State Department is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information on, or the locations of, associates of three Russian nationals suspected of coordinating widespread cyberattacks against U.S. companies, causing millions in damages, prosecutors announced July 14.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Ohio unsealed indictments Tuesday for Alexander Alexandrovich Volosovik, 43, Kirill Andreevich Zatolokin, 34, and Yulia Vladimirovna Pankova, 29, all of St. Petersburg, Russia.

The charges include conspiracy to commit and aid and abet computer fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

United States Attorney David M. Toepfer for the Northern District of Ohio said, “The victims in this case are not only in Ohio, but also in 20 other states across the country, touching every aspect of Americans’ lives. They include banks, schools, government entities, hospitals, and media companies.”

The three Russia-based defendants manage Media Land and ML.Cloud infrastructures out of St. Petersburg, while its infrastructure was previously located throughout China, Russia, Finland, the Netherlands, and the United States, according to U.S. authorities.

“From their overseas safe haven, these defendants ran the criminal infrastructure that powered attacks on critical institutions across our nation,” said Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Prosecutors say the companies were used by malicious cyber actors to engage in ransomware attacks, phishing attacks, “brute force” cyberattacks, and to host criminal forums and online criminal marketplaces.

Authorities also claim the companies were used to send DDOS attacks—malicious cyber attempts to disrupt websites and networks by overwhelming them with bogus online traffic causing congestion—to U.S. companies and critical infrastructure.

Media Land also allegedly helped with hundreds of other malicious cyber activities between 2016 and 2024 that contributed to at least $61 million in damages, according to the Justice Department. The malware and ransomware targeted banks, schools, government entities, hospitals, and media companies in the United States, prosecutors claim.

Volosovik, the general director and owner of Media Land, is suspected of using the company to provide infrastructure and tech support to criminal client conspirators with the means to infect victims’ computers with malware and ransomware and then extort the victims for money and cryptocurrency.

Pankova, who owns ML.Cloud, is suspected of doing the same, according to court documents.

“Today’s announcement underscores the importance of global partnerships and international collaboration, especially in a borderless world riddled with cyber criminals,” said FBI Cleveland Special Agent in Charge Josh DelManzo in a statement.