Man, 45, arrested in Moldova for cyberattacks on Dutch research council

The police in Moldova were aided by Dutch authorities in their arrest of a 45-year-old man who is suspected of involvement in a cyberattack on the Dutch Research Council (NWO). Moldovan media outlets have reported that the incident occurred in 2021 and was performed by the group DoppelPaymer. The attack led to weeks of delays regarding the treatment of subsidy applications. The damage caused by the attack amounted to around 4.5 million euros, Moldovan police say.

The hackers used malware, which can lock documents until the users pay the fee requested. The NWO reported at the time that the fee had not been paid. The man’s nationality has not been released. Moldovan authorities said that it is a “foreign state citizen.”

The man was wanted internationally for various cyber crimes against companies in the Netherlands. It was reported that the man was staying in Moldova temporarily. He is currently imprisoned. Moldovan media outlets have reported that he will be extradited to the Netherlands.

On May 6, the suspect’s home and car were searched by the authorities. Almost 85,000 euros were seized during the search. A storage for electronic money, two laptops, a telephone, a tablet, six bank cards, and various devices for storing digital data were also seized.