Thwarting cybercrime will always require constant and continued collaboration among critical stakeholders across the globe. As a result of such collaboration and commitment to the fight, two cyber milestones occurred yesterday. First, law enforcement agencies from around the world, including the United States (U.S.), Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Lithuania and Ukraine came together to announce the successful result of their joint efforts to take over Emotet’s command-and-control infrastructure and make arrests. Second, authorities in the U.S. and Bulgaria collaborated to disrupt operations of the Netwalker ransomware threat group and arrest a Canadian national, who is alleged to have made more than $27 million via Netwalker attacks.

These two cybercrime developments are welcomed warmly by cybersecurity professionals. The Emotet group, in operation since 2014 and called the “world’s most dangerous malware,” has rapidly evolved to be the “go-to” group for attackers. The joint effort by global law enforcement has effectively eliminated their threat to individuals and organizations across the globe. The disruption of the Netwalker ransomware threat group, and the subsequent arrest, will allow organizations in healthcare and education rest easier as they have been frequent targets during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

While progress has been made in, it is still important for businesses of all sizes and across industries to be diligent in preventing and responding to ransomware attacks on their networks. It is important for all organizations to continue to train their employees on attack risks and vectors, as well as have an Incident Response Plan in place for the inevitable attack. If you have any questions about the above or would like to schedule a consultation on preparing for an attack or responding to an attack, please contact Jenn Coughlin (; 267.930.4774) or another Mullen Coughlin representative.