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Kacper Pempel | Reuters

A 20-year-old Russian hacker was part of a campaign that worked to extort tens of millions of dollars from more than 1,400 victims, federal prosecutors said Thursday.

Ruslan Astamirov, a citizen of the Russian-controlled Chechen Republic, was arrested by federal law enforcement at an unspecified date and faces charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and ransoming, New Jersey federal prosecutors said.

Astamirov allegedly deployed ransomware called LockBit to steal sensitive data from the servers of businesses, then lock those systems and demand payment of hundreds of thousands of dollars. If the victims didn’t pay, Astarimov allegedly threatened to release the data.

Department of Justice prosecutors allege Astamirov was directly responsible for five different attacks against U.S. businesses in Florida and Virginia, as well as international businesses based in France, Japan and Kenya.

At least one of the victims paid $700,000, the complaint says. Another victim refused to pay, and Astamirov uploaded its data to LockBit’s public server, according to the complaint.

LockBit-powered attacks account for 16% of ransomware attacks against state and local governments, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

“In securing the arrest of a second Russian national affiliated with the LockBit ransomware, the Department has once again demonstrated the long arm of the law. We will continue to use every tool at our disposal to disrupt cybercrime, and while cybercriminals may continue to run, they ultimately cannot hide,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said.

LockBit was first identified in January 2020 on Russian-language cybercrime forums. It’s part of a class of hacking methods and technologies dubbed ransomware as a service (RaaS).

In RaaS, a technical team of developers exploits and maintains software to penetrate corporate or individual computers, then end users buy the software and deploy it against corporate networks. The end users pay either a fee or a percentage of their profits to the technical group behind LockBit.

Astamirov will face a federal judge Thursday, prosecutors said in a release announcing his arrest. He’s the third Russia-linked individual to be charged with crimes related to using LockBit.

His arrest comes as cybersecurity matters grow in size and importance. NBC News reported Thursday on a widespread cyberattack that has affected “several” federal agencies. CNBC previously reported on how a China-backed cyber group compromised U.S. Navy systems, according to Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro.

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U.S. House tells staffers not to use Meta’s WhatsApp

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U.S. House tells staffers not to use Meta’s WhatsApp

A woman walks past a logo of WhatsApp during a Meta event in Mumbai, India, on Sept. 20, 2023.

Niharika Kulkarni | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Meta is pushing back against a ban on WhatsApp from government devices.

The chief administrative officer, or CAO, of the U.S. House of Representatives told staffers on Monday that they are not allowed to use Meta’s popular messaging app. The CAO cited a lack of transparency about WhatsApp’s data privacy and security practices as the reason for the ban, according to a report by Axios that cited an internal email from the government office.

The CAO told House staff members in the email that they are not allowed to download WhatsApp on their government devices or access the app on their smartphones or desktop computers, the report said. Staff members must remove WhatsApp from their devices if they have the app installed on their devices, the report said.

“Protecting the People’s House is our topmost priority, and we are always monitoring and analyzing for potential cybersecurity risks that could endanger the data of House Members and staff,” U.S. House Chief Administrative Officer Catherine Szpindor told CNBC in a written statement.

Meta spokesperson Andy Stone on Monday responded to the report via a post on X, saying the company disagrees “with the House Chief Administrative Officer’s characterization in the strongest possible terms.”

“We know members and their staffs regularly use WhatsApp and we look forward to ensuring members of the House can join their Senate counterparts in doing so officially,” Stone said.

In a separate X post, Stone said WhatsApp’s encrypted nature provides a “higher level of security than most of the apps on the CAO’s approved list that do not offer that protection.”

Some of the messaging apps the CAO said are acceptable alternatives to WhatsApp include Microsoft Teams, Signal and Apple’s iMessage, the Axios report said.

Meta is currently embroiled in an antitrust case with the Federal Trade Commission over the social media company’s acquisitions of WhatsApp and Instagram.

Last week, Meta debuted ads in WhatsApp in an effort to monetize the app that CEO Mark Zuckerberg has deemed “the next chapter” for his company’s history.

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Super Micro shares fall on planned $2 billion convertible debt offering

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Super Micro shares fall on planned  billion convertible debt offering

The Super Micro Computer headquarters in San Jose, California, on Dec. 3, 2024.

David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Super Micro Computer shares fell about 6% on Monday after the server maker said it plans to offer $2 billion in convertible notes, maturing in 2030.

A company’s stock often falls on the announcement of a convertible offering because the eventual conversion to equity could dilute existing shareholders’ stakes.

Super Micro, which has seen its business boom due to soaring demand for Nvidia’s artificial intelligence processors, said in a press release that it plans to use the proceeds from the offering for “general corporate purposes, including to fund working capital for growth and business expansion.” It also said it would spend about $200 million to repurchase its stock from the note issuers.

Even after Monday’s slide, Super Micro shares are up close to 40% so far in 2025 as the company remains one of a handful of server makers that can sell systems based around new chips from Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices, and Intel soon after they start shipping. The stock has been viewed by Wall Street as an AI pure play that will appreciate with tech megacap companies expected to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on data centers to support AI workloads.

Super Micro also secured a major contract with a data center in Saudi Arabia when President Donald Trump visited the Middle East in May.

Super Micro “has emerged as a market leader in AI-optimized infrastructure,” Raymond James analysts wrote in a report last month, saying that 70% of the company’s revenue was attributable to AI. The analysts recommend buying the stock.

Investors soured on Super Micro in March and April on concerns about tariffs, and in May the company slashed its fiscal 2025 guidance and chose not to reiterate its previous forecast for $40 billion in fiscal 2026 sales, due to tariff and AI chip uncertainty.

The stock has recouped some of those losses but is still trading well below its high for the year reached in February.

Super Micro had a tumultuous 2024 largely because of accusations of accounting irregularities, and was forced to refile financials with the SEC in order to avoid delisting from the Nasdaq. Super Micro also named a new auditor, removed its CFO and named additional members to its board of directors.

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Amazon launches second batch of Kuiper internet satellites, taking on Elon Musk’s Starlink

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Amazon launches second batch of Kuiper internet satellites, taking on Elon Musk's Starlink

An Atlas V rocket of United Launch Alliance (ULA) lifts off from Space Launch Complex 41 at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on June 23, 2025.

Gregg Newton | Afp | Getty Images

Amazon‘s second batch of Kuiper internet satellites reached low Earth orbit on Monday, adding to its plans for a massive constellation and ramping up competition with SpaceX’s Starlink.

A United Launch Alliance rocket carrying 27 Kuiper satellites lifted off from a launchpad at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 6:54 a.m. ET, according to a livestream.

“We have ignition and lift off of United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper internet constellation, continuing a new chapter in low Earth orbit satellite connectivity,” Ben Chilton, an ordnance engineer at ULA, said on the livestream following the launch.

Monday’s mission was rescheduled twice, owing to inclement weather and a problem with the rocket booster.

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Six years ago, Amazon unveiled its plans to build a constellation of internet-beaming satellites in low Earth orbit, called Project Kuiper. The service will compete directly with Elon Musk’s Starlink, which currently dominates the market and has 8,000 satellites in orbit.

Amazon in April successfully sent up 27 Kuiper internet satellites into low Earth orbit, a region of space that’s within 1,200 miles of the Earth’s surface.

The 54 craft currently in orbit are the start of Amazon’s planned constellation of 3,236 satellites. The company has to meet a Federal Communications Commission deadline to launch half of its total constellation, or 1,618 satellites, by July 2026.

The company has booked more than 80 launches with several providers, including rival SpaceX, to deliver Kuiper its satellites into orbit.

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