The U.S. Department of Justice has charged two brothers, Ahmed and Alaa Omer, with cyberattacks on hospitals that could have resulted in casualties. According to the indictment , the brothers were members of the notorious hacker group Anonymous Sudan and organized more than 35,000 DDoS attacks on hundreds of organizations, including hospitals in the United States, Denmark, Sweden and India. According to the special agent🇺🇸 FBI Elliott Peterson, who was involved in the investigation of the hacker group “Anonymous Sudan”, claims that the attacks were carried out using the Skynet botnet network, also known as the “Godzilla Botnet”.
The Omer brothers’ case also involves cyber attacks on Israel’s early warning system.🚀 rocket attacks on Tzeva Adom, which they disabled during the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023. For hackers, cyberattacks have become part of their ideological struggle aimed at supporting the Palestinians.
One of the most serious cases of the allegations is the attack on 🏥Cedars-Sinai Health Systems in Los Angeles, which forced the hospital to redirect patients to other facilities. According to the case, Ahmed Omer intentionally targeted hospitals to cause physical harm or death to patients, citing his actions as a response to Israeli attacks on hospitals in Gaza. At the height of the attack, Ahmed Omer allegedly posted a message on Telegram: “Bomb our hospitals in Gaza, we will close yours.” Such actions became the basis for charges against him that could carry a life sentence, an unprecedented step in the history of ransomware attacks .
Anonymous Sudan’s DDoS attacks shut down the emergency room at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, forcing incoming patients to be sent to other medical facilities for about 8 hours. Anonymous Sudan’s attacks cost over $10 million in damages to U.S. victims.
— writes the American Justice Gov.
The brothers’ whereabouts have not been disclosed, but prosecutor Martin Estrada confirmed:👮 They are in custody. The document also mentions that this is one of the harshest charges ever brought against hackers for DDoS attacks, which underlines the seriousness of the situation. Ultimately, the chances of life imprisonment depend on the evidence and how the prosecution presents the case in court.
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