Extradited Russian Hacker Charged in Excel Malware Campaign Targeting Freelance Platform Users
DOJ unseals charges against Searzhudin Tamirlanovich Aktulaev for 2016-2017 campaign using fake accounts to distribute malicious Excel attachments

Key Takeaways
- Russian national Searzhudin Tamirlanovich Aktulaev has been charged by the U.S. DOJ for a malware campaign active between 2016 and 2017.
- The campaign used approximately 255 fake accounts on a freelance platform to distribute malware-laced Excel attachments to approximately 80,000 users.
- Aktulaev was arrested in Cyprus in May 2025 and extradited to the United States on August 28, 2026.
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