On December 19, 2023, the Justice Department (“DOJ”) announced a disruption campaign against the Blackcat ransomware group. In the same press release, they also stated that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”) had developed a decryption tool to combat ALPHV/Blackcat’s ransomware variant. Over the last couple of years, Blackcat’s ransomware has risen in popularity and […]
Penn State University Hit With False Claims Act Suit for Alleged Cyber Security Deficiencies
On September 1, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania unsealed a qui tam False Claims Act (“FCA”) lawsuit (originally filed on October 5, 2022) alleging Penn State University failed to provide “adequate security” for Covered Defense Information, as contractually required by Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (“DFARS”) 252.204-7012. DFARS requires […]
Chinese Hackers Exploit Gap in Cloud Environment Used by U.S. Government
According to recent reports issued by Microsoft and U.S. government agencies, hackers recently exploited a gap in Microsoft’s cloud environment, enabling the malicious actors to access the email accounts of employees at the United States Commerce and State Departments. Including the U.S. government, around 10 organizations were victimized in the U.S. and about 25 were […]
CISA Issues Request for Information Prior to Required CIRCIA Rulemaking
On September 12, 2022, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued a request for information (RFI) seeking input from stakeholders on the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022 (CIRCIA). Signed by President Biden in March, CIRCIA requires CISA to develop and implement regulations requiring covered entities to report information about covered […]
DOJ Issues New Policy on CFAA Prosecutions
Today, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) updated its policy regarding charging violations under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”). This is the first update to the DOJ’s policy since 2014, and it is effective immediately. The policy states that all federal prosecutors who wish to charge cases under the CFAA must follow the new […]