The prosecutor’s office has sent a criminal case against three 18-year-old men to court. The classmates from Ashmyany and the Pinsk resident are accused of developing computer viruses and distributing them as a group.
According to the prosecution, the classmates from Ashmyany met the Pinsk resident through social media. During 2025, they developed and distributed malicious software, including trojans, ransomware, blockers and extortion viruses.
“The programs they developed were designed to intercept keyboard keystrokes, lock the screen, preventing the user from working with a PC normally, as well as damage and destroy system files, making it impossible to launch applications and operate the operating system as a whole.
In addition, the programs were designed to steal users’ data (passwords, browsing history, credit card details, usernames, computer information and other data) and display messages demanding a ransom for the data,” the prosecutor’s office said.
The prosecutor’s office noted that all three were self-taught and acquired their knowledge about viruses from forums and messengers.
“During the investigation, instances of the malicious programs being distributed to other users were established. These users could not be identified because they concealed their digital traces.
The unlawful activities of the accused were stopped by law enforcement before any consequences occurred for the victims,” the prosecutor’s office added.
The defendants’ actions were classified under Part 1 of Article 354, Part 2 of Article 354, as well as Part 6 of Article 16 and Part 1 of Article 354 of the Criminal Code. They remain under a written undertaking not to leave the country.
