The United States government has started offering rewards in cryptocurrency for information relating to the operations of hackers or suspected terrorists.
The State Department’s “Rewards for Justice” platform allows informants to receive digital assets as rewards when submit anonymous tips. The following platform was promoted at the Black Hat USA event which was in Las Vegas, with users able to submit tips via an unsecured Wi-Fi network called #Rewardsnotransoms. The open network was purposely set up to encourage attendees to log in and access the RFJ website.
Rewards as much as $10 million are being offered in exchange for information on various terrorist suspects, extremists, and state-sponsored hackers. Informants elect whether they wish to receive compensation in the form of crypto assets. Informants provide sensitive information via a secure portal on the dark web which is the layer of the internet that is not publicly accessed by commercial companies and search engines.
The Biden administration accused hackers employed by both Russia and China of breaching multiple U.S. government agencies and departments. U.S. Officials recovered around $2.3 million in cryptocurrency used to pay a ransom following a cyber-attack on the Colonial Pipeline system.
The RFJ program hopes to prevent these types of attacks by soliciting information from hackers with pertinent skills and expertise. While the platform has already received tips, one State Department official emphasized that cyber-enforcement operations are “not a quick process.”
