The Internet reported that the U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil forfeiture lawsuit against Rustam Rafailevich Gallyamov, a Russian citizen suspected of developing Qakbot malware, demanding the confiscation of more than US$24 million in cryptocurrency. 48-year-old Gallyamov is accused of operating the malware since 2008 and forming a botnet by infecting thousands of computers in 2019. Matthew Galeotti, head of the criminal division of the U.S. Department of Justice, said the action showed that all legal means will be used to hold accountable for cybercrimes. In 2023, an international operation led by the United States destroyed the Qakbot network, when 170 bitcoins and US$4 million in stablecoins were seized. The indictment shows that the defendant has since switched to new methods to continue deploying ransomware such as Black Basta. It is reported that access to the Qakbot botnet has been sold to many global ransomware attacks, including well-known ransomware organizations such as Conti and REvil.