International efforts aimed at combating the rising menace of ransomware, spearheaded by the Biden administration

The Biden administration has taken a significant step in the fight against ransomware, hosting a virtual summit with allies from 30 nations on Wednesday. The event aimed to develop a multi-pronged strategy to combat the growing threat of ransomware, which has seen a recent resurgence led by newly formed groups.

Russia was noticeably absent from the virtual event, but a senior State Department official is meeting directly with Russian counterparts on the issue this week. The administration has previously engaged Russia on ransomware issues through the U.S.-Kremlin Experts Group. However, the Biden administration began an effort to crack down on malicious ransomware activity following the attacks on Colonial Pipeline in May and the JBS USA meat processing incident.

Despite some steps taken by Russia to combat ransomware activity, the Biden administration is still looking for follow-up actions. The administration has shared information on criminal ransomware activity taking place within Russia's borders with Russian officials. However, the implicit threats made by the administration that the U.S. maintained the right to unleash its own strategic cyber capabilities against overseas targets if the ransomware attacks continued, suggest a growing frustration with Russia's lack of cooperation.

The discussions at the summit centered around four main areas: developing resilience to combat ransomware, combating the use of cryptocurrency as an enabler of ransomware activity, disrupting ransomware activity, and using diplomacy to combat ransomware. Allie Mellen, analyst at Forrester Research, states that hosting the summit is a valuable step towards working towards more comprehensive solutions for ransomware. Katell Thielemann, research VP at Gartner, notes that the larger effort to combat ransomware should be viewed as the beginning of a long-term project.

Thielemann also emphasizes that the summit sends a message that the "coalition of the willing" global community is starting to come together. However, she also highlights that the problem of ransomware is complex, messy, and likely to worsen before it improves. China and North Korea, in addition to Russia, were not present at the summit, according to officials.

The private sector was not included in the summit. The administration, though, has made it clear that the fight against ransomware is not just a government issue, but one that requires the cooperation of the private sector as well. US government council members meet regularly as part of an international initiative to cooperate against the spread of ransomware, with recent coordinated actions involving agencies such as CISA and DHS around mid-2025, focusing on rapid defense measures against ransomware campaigns observed globally in 2025.

The White House is expected to provide an update on a new international cooperation strategy to fight ransomware on Thursday. The summit is significant in highlighting the challenges faced in combating ransomware and the need for a unified global effort to address this growing threat.

International efforts aimed at combating the rising menace of ransomware, spearheaded by the Biden administration