Justice · Thursday, October 8, 2026
Owner of a firm that promised not to pay ransoms is charged with paying them
The File desk · Oct 8, 2026, 10:47 AM UTC
Status
Confirmed as an indictment and an arraignment. The Justice Department posted the release on Oct. 7, 2026. An indictment is an accusation. Zohar Pinhasi is presumed innocent.
- Confirmed
Prosecutors say Pinhasi's company, MonsterCloud, told clients it could unlock files without paying criminals, then paid the hackers and billed the clients more.
- Confirmed
He was arraigned Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court. The charges are unproven.
Zohar Pinhasi's company, MonsterCloud, told hacked businesses it could unlock their files without paying the criminals. Prosecutors say that was false. The indictment says he quietly paid the hackers for the keys and billed clients far more. In one case around August 2023, he paid about $8,200 and charged the client about $150,000. Over the scheme he allegedly charged more than $19 million and paid more than $8 million in ransoms. He was arraigned Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court. An indictment is an accusation. He is presumed innocent.
Pinhasi, 50, is a U.S. and Israeli national. The release also names him as Zack Silver and Zack Green. The charges are two counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy, a Legal instrument Using phone lines, the internet, or other wires to carry out a scheme to cheat people out of money, and agreeing with others to do it. Up to 20 years per count, per the Justice Department. The releases cited here do not give a statute section.Wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud
The case is in the Eastern District of New York. The FBI is investigating, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency advises victims not to pay ransoms, the release says. The release number is 26-1153. It cites no statute section.
What is still unknown or disputed
- What plea he entered.
- The next court date.
- MonsterCloud's response.
Primary sources
Every claim in this story is drawn from the documents below. If a fetch failed, that is recorded on the card.
Source 1
Known Cybersecurity Expert and Owner of Florida Ransomware Remediation Company Charged with Defrauding Clients
U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs · October 7, 2026
For instance, in or around August 2023, he made a ransom payment of approximately $8,200 to a cybercriminal and charged the client approximately $150,000.
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/known-cybersecurity-expert-and-owner-florida-ransomware-remediation-company-charged