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July 16 (UPI) -- In an effort to crack down on cyberattacks targeting the United States from overseas, the Biden administration announced new measures including offering a $10 million reward for information that identifies those responsible. The initiatives were announced as the United States has confronted several high-profile attacks targeting U.S. infrastructure in the past few months with some attributed to criminal organizations and others to state-backed actors.
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The reward was offered by the State Department's Rewards for Justice program, which said in a statement Thursday the money will go to anyone with information that identifies or locates those acting at the direction of a foreign government conducting cyberattacks against U.S. critical infrastructure.
The department said it created a Dark Web Tor-based channel for the public to report tips to the government, and was announced the same day the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice with other federal partners launched a website -- stopransomware.gov -- to offer the public resources to combat ransomware.
The government defines ransomware as a form of malware designed to encrypt files on a device, rendering it unusable. Those responsible then demand a ransom for its decryption.
"Cyber criminals have targeted critical infrastructure, small businesses, hospitals, police departments, schools and more," Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement. "These attacks directly impact Americans' daily lives and the security of our nation."
The departments described the website as a central hub for ransomware resources from all federal government agencies, including alerts, updates and information that were previously scattered on various federal government websites.
"The Department of Justice is committed to protecting Americans from the rise in ransomware attacks that we have seen in recent years," Attorney General Merrick Garland said.
Since taking office in January, the Biden administration has place cybersecurity as a priority as the nation has been repeatedly targeted in sophisticated state-sponsored intrusions and criminal gang attacks.
In December, it was revealed that Russian state-sponsored hackers had infiltrated several federal agencies as well as some 100 companies through a vulnerability in the widely used SolarWinds software.
In May, it was revealed that the same Russian state-sponsored hackers had targeted government agencies, think tanks and non-governmental organizations after infiltrating the email system of the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Concerning ransomware, criminal hackers known as DarkSide, also believed to be Russian, momentarily caused a major U.S. gas pipeline to shutter in May through their attack that netted them some $4.4 million, though the Justice Department said it has recovered most of those funds.
Early last month, Russian cybercriminal organization REvil earned $11 million from JBS after they brought its meat processing plants in the United States and Australia to a halt.
The Justice Department said roughly $350 million in ransomware was paid to malicious actors last year, representing a more than 300% jump from the year previous.
Though not high-profile, the department said 75% of all ransomware attacks target small businesses.
President Joe Biden has taken several previous measures to combat such attacks, including signing a lengthy executive order in May to beef up the nation's cybersecurity.
In the middle of last month during a highly anticipated summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Switzerland, Biden gave his counterpart a list of 16 infrastructure sites that if targeted in cyberattacks would incite retaliation.
