Biden mulls retaliation over cyberattack

WASHINGTON (AFP) — US President Joe Biden said Wednesday he is “looking” at possible retaliation after the White House linked Russia to a cyberattack against global meat processing giant JBS.

Asked by a reporter if he would take action against President Vladimir Putin, whom he will meet for a summit in Geneva later this month, Biden said: “We’re looking closely at that issue.”

The ransomware attack on a US subsidiary of Brazilian-owned JBS has again prompted accusations that Russia is at least harboring cybercriminals.

Similar suspicions were raised after ransomware hackers forced the temporary shutdown of the huge Colonial fuel pipeline in the eastern United States last month.

Asked if Putin is testing him ahead of their summit, Biden said “no.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on Wednesday attributed the attack to “REvil and Sodinokibi,” which experts have said are two names for the same hacking group with ties to Russia, and said it was “working diligently to bring the threat actors to justice.”

“We continue to focus our efforts on imposing risk and consequences and holding the responsible cyber actors accountable,” the FBI said in a statement.

The White House says Biden will bring up US concerns during the summit on 16 June, as well as at earlier summits with allies in the G7 group, the European Union and NATO.

“We expect this to be an issue of discussion throughout the president’s trip,” Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.

For its part, Russia said Wednesday it would be open to any US request for help in investigating the cyberattack.