A former ransomware negotiator has pleaded guilty to secretly working with the BlackCat ransomware group and conspiring to launch attacks against multiple victims across the US, according to Infosecurity Magazine. Angelo Martino, 41, of Land O’Lakes, Florida, admitted one count of conspiracy to obstruct, delay or affect commerce or the movement of any article or commodity in commerce by extortion.
He began colluding with the BlackCat group in April 2023 and, while working as a negotiator for five corporate victims, passed information such as insurance policy limits and internal negotiation positions to the group, for which he was paid. He also admitted to conspiring with Ryan Goldberg of Georgia and Kevin Martin of Texas to deploy ransomware against various US victims between April and November 2023, effectively acting as a BlackCat affiliate.
Authorities have seized $10m in Martino’s assets, and court documents seen by Infosecurity suggest ransom payments to the trio at least included $16.5m from a hospitality firm, $25.7m from a financial services firm, and $26.8m from a non-profit, while BlackCat, also known as ALPHV, is estimated by the FBI to have generated up to $300m from hundreds of victims. Martino will be sentenced on 9 July and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment.