White House: Ask the Hackers Why Ransomware Attacks from Russia Increasing Under Joe Biden

The White House on Wednesday feigned ignorance as to why attacks from criminal entities in Russia increased after President Joe Biden took office.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki discussed the rise in cyberattacks during the daily briefing at the White House.

“I don’t think I’m the right one to speak to that,” she said when asked by Fox News reporter Peter Doocy about the alarming rise of attacks on American interests coming from Russia.

Psaki said that perhaps the hackers themselves could explain why they were launching more attacks on private sector computer systems.

“I think you could certainly track down those cybercriminals in Russia and have a good chat with them,” she said to Doocy.

The cyberattack against JBS SA, the world’s largest meat producer, shut down all of American’s beef plants this week as they struggled to regain control of their systems. In March, the ransomware attack on the Colonial Pipeline created fuel shortages on the East Coast. The ferry service to Martha’s Vineyard was also hit by a ransomware attack on Wednesday.

Psaki argued that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a responsibility to stop the ransomware attacks coming out of Russia.

“Responsible states do not harbor ransomware criminals,” she said.

She said that President Biden would bring up the attacks during his meeting with Putin later this month in Geneva.

“President Biden certainly thinks Putin and the Russian government have a role to play in stopping these attacks,” she said.