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After Biden Warning, Hackers Define ‘Critical’ as They See Fit

  • BlackMatter says recent victim too small to violate U.S. edict
  • President had told Putin that 16 sectors were off limits
ew Cooperative recently identified a cybersecurity incident that is impacting some of our company’s devices and systems

ew Cooperative recently identified a cybersecurity incident that is impacting some of our company’s devices and systems

Photographer: Nicolas Asfouri/AFP/Getty Images 

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After a furious run of ransomware attacks in the first half of the year, President Joe Biden in July warned his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, that Russia-based hacking groups should steer clear of 16 critical sectors of the U.S. economy.

In recent days, a Russia-linked ransomware group called BlackMatter attacked a grain cooperative in Iowa, an incident that appears to test Biden’s terms since “food and agriculture” is one of the protected sectors.