The Miracle of the Emptied Hive

The wonder

On 26 January 2023 the Department of Justice revealed that the FBI had secretly been inside the Hive ransomware infrastructure since July 2022. For seven months it had quietly handed more than 300 decryption keys to victims under attack and over 1,000 to earlier victims, preventing about $130 million in ransom payments. Then, with German and Dutch police, it seized Hive's servers and leak site.

The miracle worker

The FBI's Tampa field office, with Germany's BKA and the Dutch National High Tech Crime Unit, who stayed inside the hive for months without getting stung.

Thanksgiving

For keys delivered quietly to those about to pay, and for a hive emptied without fuss until the right day, we give thanks. Amen.

Technical record

The FBI had secretly been inside Hive's infrastructure since July 2022, quietly giving more than 300 decryption keys to victims under attack and over 1,000 to earlier victims. This prevented about $130 million in ransom payments. With German and Dutch police, it then seized Hive's servers and leak site.