Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and London Police said two men linked to the “Scattered Spider” hacking group were sentenced to five years and six months in prison.

Both pleaded guilty at their first hearing at Woolwich Crown Court on June 22 and were sentenced on Thursday, according to press release from the NCA.

British authorities said the two were part of the Scattered Spider cybercrime group, which investigators have linked to high-profile ransomware and cryptocurrency extortion attacks targeting companies in the UK and US.

The hacking group has been linked to the infiltration of London’s public transport network in September 2024, leading to losses and recovery costs of 29 million British pounds ($38.9 million).

According to a September report, US prosecutors linked the Scattered Spider group to collecting $115 million in crypto ransoms from at least 47 US companies. press release from the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The group was also accused of hacking into Caesars Entertainment and stealing a huge customer database in September 2023, prompting the company to pay a ransom of $15 million in Bitcoin (BTC).

U.S. prosecutors said the group’s attacks disrupted businesses and organizations across the country, including critical infrastructure and the federal court system.

Source: Dark web whistleblower

Related: MacOS malware hijacks Telegram sessions and attacks cryptocurrency wallets: SlowMist

The FBI seized $36 million in wallets linked to Scattered Spider

According to a September announcement from the Department of Justice, in July 2024, the FBI seized approximately $36 million worth of cryptocurrency from wallets associated with Scattered Spider.

According to the Department of Justice, investigators have linked the group to at least 120 computer network intrusions. It said that as part of the investigation, the FBI tracked and seized digital assets linked to wallets allegedly controlled by group members.

“These malicious attacks caused widespread disruptions to U.S. businesses and organizations, including critical infrastructure and the federal justice system, underscoring the significant and growing threat posed by brazen cybercriminals,” said Matthew Galeotti, then acting assistant attorney general in the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Warehouse: Does the Botanix failure prove that Bitcoiners don’t care about DeFi?