Anastasia-Inside-BlackBasta.pdf

Actor Profiles, Extortion Tactics

& Finances

April 2022. a group of cybercriminals calling themselves BlackBasta came together, determined to continue their illicit operations. At its core were former members of Conti, a ransomware group infamous for its high-profile attacks, including the Government of Costa Rica. Conti’s downfall came swiftly after the group publicly declared its support for the Russian government following the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which became a fatal mistake. Soon after, an individual, seemingly at odds with Conti's political stance, leaked the group’s internal chats, exposing their operations to the world and leading to its eventual shutdown in May 2022.

Bad luck seemed to follow former Conti actors again on February 11…