{
	"id": "83622a47-1c45-4aa1-b09e-1a9b93b9c84f",
	"created_at": "2026-04-06T00:18:41.295995Z",
	"updated_at": "2026-04-10T03:21:52.927292Z",
	"deleted_at": null,
	"sha1_hash": "040dd38263d5edf9c1e66e60b2e9cbc2b2b2df26",
	"title": "Zeus, IcedID malware gangs leader pleads guilty, faces 40 years in prison",
	"llm_title": "",
	"authors": "",
	"file_creation_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
	"file_modification_date": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z",
	"file_size": 2075413,
	"plain_text": "Zeus, IcedID malware gangs leader pleads guilty, faces 40 years in prison\r\nBy Sergiu Gatlan\r\nPublished: 2024-02-15 · Archived: 2026-04-05 17:52:03 UTC\r\nUkrainian national Vyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov, one of the heads of the notorious JabberZeus cybercrime gang, has\r\npleaded guilty to charges related to his leadership roles in the Zeus and IcedID malware groups.\r\nPenchukov (also known as 'tank' and 'father') was arrested in Switzerland in October 2022 while traveling to meet his wife in\r\nGeneva and extradited to the United States in 2023.\r\nThe U.S. Department of Justice first charged him in 2012 for his involvement in the Zeus malware operation and the theft of\r\nmillions of dollars using personal identification numbers, bank account numbers, credentials, and other sensitive info stolen\r\nfrom infected devices.\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/zeus-icedid-malware-gangs-leader-pleads-guilty-faces-40-years-in-prison/\r\nPage 1 of 4\n\n0:00\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/zeus-icedid-malware-gangs-leader-pleads-guilty-faces-40-years-in-prison/\r\nPage 2 of 4\n\nVisit Advertiser websiteGO TO PAGE\r\nMultiple sources also told BleepingComputer that Penchukov was part of the leadership of the Maze and Egregor\r\nransomware operations. Maze was the first ransomware gang involved in double-extortion attacks where stolen data was\r\nused as leverage to pressure victims.\r\nMaze ransomware was later rebranded to Egregor and Sekhmet to evade law enforcement. Despite this, Penchukov was\r\namong the suspects arrested in January 2021 by Ukrainian police as part of a joint international operation targeting the\r\nEgregor ransomware gang.\r\nHowever, as investigative journalist Brian Krebs reported, he evaded prosecution using his political connections, including\r\nthe late son of former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.\r\nJABBERZEUS wanted poster (FBI)\r\nPenchukov was also part of the leadership of the IcedID (aka Bokbot) malware operation after being added to the FBI's\r\nCyber Most Wanted List between November 2018 and February 2021.\r\nHe and his co-conspirators used the malware to steal the victims' sensitive information, including banking account\r\ncredentials, and to provide other cybercriminals with access to compromised systems to deploy additional malicious\r\npayloads like ransomware.\r\n\"Vyacheslav Igorevich Penchukov was a leader of two prolific malware groups that infected thousands of computers with\r\nmalicious software. These criminal groups stole millions of dollars from their victims and even attacked a major hospital\r\nwith ransomware, leaving it unable to provide critical care to patients for over two weeks,\" said Acting Assistant Attorney\r\nGeneral Nicole M. Argentieri.\r\n\"Before his arrest and extradition to the United States, the defendant was a fugitive on the FBI's most wanted list for nearly a\r\ndecade.\"\r\nPenchukov entered a guilty plea to one charge of conspiracy related to racketeering under the Racketeer Influenced and\r\nCorrupt Organizations (RICO) Act for his leadership role in the Zeus operation and to another charge of conspiracy to\r\ncommit wire fraud for his leadership role in the IcedID malware group.\r\nScheduled for sentencing on May 9, Penchukov faces a potential maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment for each\r\ncount.\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/zeus-icedid-malware-gangs-leader-pleads-guilty-faces-40-years-in-prison/\r\nPage 3 of 4\n\nAutomated Pentesting Covers Only 1 of 6 Surfaces.\r\nAutomated pentesting proves the path exists. BAS proves whether your controls stop it. Most teams run one without the\r\nother.\r\nThis whitepaper maps six validation surfaces, shows where coverage ends, and provides practitioners with three diagnostic\r\nquestions for any tool evaluation.\r\nSource: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/zeus-icedid-malware-gangs-leader-pleads-guilty-faces-40-years-in-prison/\r\nhttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/zeus-icedid-malware-gangs-leader-pleads-guilty-faces-40-years-in-prison/\r\nPage 4 of 4",
	"extraction_quality": 1,
	"language": "EN",
	"sources": [
		"Malpedia",
		"ETDA"
	],
	"references": [
		"https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/zeus-icedid-malware-gangs-leader-pleads-guilty-faces-40-years-in-prison/"
	],
	"report_names": [
		"zeus-icedid-malware-gangs-leader-pleads-guilty-faces-40-years-in-prison"
	],
	"threat_actors": [],
	"ts_created_at": 1775434721,
	"ts_updated_at": 1775791312,
	"ts_creation_date": 0,
	"ts_modification_date": 0,
	"files": {
		"pdf": "https://archive.orkl.eu/040dd38263d5edf9c1e66e60b2e9cbc2b2b2df26.pdf",
		"text": "https://archive.orkl.eu/040dd38263d5edf9c1e66e60b2e9cbc2b2b2df26.txt",
		"img": "https://archive.orkl.eu/040dd38263d5edf9c1e66e60b2e9cbc2b2b2df26.jpg"
	}
}