Bitcoin falls after U.S. seizes most of Colonial ransom
Bitcoin’s price slipped again Tuesday amid a brutal sell-off among digital currencies.
The reason for the move was unclear, however it may be related to concerns over security of the cryptocurrency after U.S. officials managed to recover most of the ransom paid to hackers that targeted Colonial Pipeline.
Court documents said investigators were able to access the password for one of the hackers’ bitcoin wallets.
The money was recovered by a recently launched task force in Washington created as part of the government’s response to a rise in cyberattacks.
On Monday, U.S. law enforcement officials said they had seized $2.3 million in bitcoin paid to DarkSide, the cybercriminal gang behind a crippling cyberattack on Colonial Pipeline.
According to a court document, the Federal Bureau of Investigation was able to access the “private key,” or password, for one of the hackers’ bitcoin wallets.
Bitcoin has often been the currency of choice for hackers demanding ransom payments to decrypt data locked by malware known as “ransomware.”
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