Pro-Ukraine hacker group Bearlyfy targets Russian companies with custom ransomware

Researchers report that pro‑Ukrainian hacktivist group Bearlyfy has carried out more than 70 cyberattacks against Russian companies over the past year, escalating from using leaked ransomware variants (LockBit 3 Black, Babuk) to deploying a custom Windows ransomware called GenieLocker; their operations blend political motives with financial extortion and have seen ransom demands rise into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, with roughly 20% of victims reportedly paying.