Russian Hacker Indicted for Using Excel Malware to Target 80,000 Freelancers With TVRAT and DarkVNC

A U.S. indictment alleges a Russian national led a large-scale malware campaign (June 2016–Nov 2017) that used fraudulent freelancer platform accounts and malicious Excel attachments to deliver TVRAT/TeamSpy and DarkVNC remote-access malware. Approximately 80,000 freelancers were targeted, many in the U.S.; stolen credentials and personal data were reportedly exfiltrated to command-and-control servers and later used for fraud. The defendant was arrested in Cyprus, extradited to the U.S., and remains in custody while facing multiple charges.