Arrest warrant issued for North Korean intelligence operative allegedly behind cyberattacks in U.S.

A grand jury in Kansas City indicted Rim Jong Hyok, a North Korean military intelligence operative, for allegedly targeting 17 entities in the United States across 11 states with cyberattacks, according to the Justice Department.

According to the FBI, Hyok is a member of the Andariel Unit of the North Korean Government’s Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), a North Korean military intelligence agency.

He is "wanted for allegedly conspiring to violate the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Acting on behalf of North Korea’s RGB, Rim Jong Hyok allegedly conspired to use the Maui ransomware software to conduct computer intrusions against U.S. hospitals and healthcare companies, extort ransoms, launder the proceeds, and purchase additional internet servers to conduct cyber espionage hacks against government and technology victims in the United States, South Korea, and China."

A federal arrest warrant was issued for Hyok on Wednesday in U.S. District Court, District of Kansas, "after he was charged with conspiracy to commit computer hacking and conspiracy to commit promotion money laundering," the FBI said.

The Rewards For Justice Program of the U.S. Department of State, is "offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of any person who, while acting at the direction or under the control of a foreign government, engages in certain malicious cyber activities against U.S. critical infrastructure in violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, to include Rim Jong Hyok," according to an FBI "Most Wanted" webpage.