Iranian Hacker Guilty in $19 Million Baltimore Attack

An Iranian hacker has pleaded guilty in the U.S. to involvement in a wide-ranging ransomware and extortion operation that inflicted $19 million in damages on the city of Baltimore. The defendant, identified as Sina Gholinejad, also known as Sina Ghaaf, 37, admitted to participating in a scheme that used Robbinhood ransomware to infiltrate and encrypt the computer networks of multiple U.S.-based organizations.

According to prosecutors, Gholinejad and his co-conspirators deployed the malware to lock critical files and then demanded ransom payments in Bitcoin to restore access. The Robbinhood ransomware was central to the attack that crippled Baltimore’s municipal systems, disrupting city services and operations.

The plea marks a significant development in international cybercrime enforcement, highlighting growing cooperation between law enforcement agencies to hold foreign actors accountable. Gholinejad’s conviction underscores the ongoing threat posed by ransomware gangs targeting U.S. infrastructure and the importance of resilient cybersecurity defenses against such attacks.