WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of key leaders in the Hive ransomware organized crime group, the State Department said in a statement on Thursday.

"The Hive ransomware variant targeted victims in over 80 countries, including the United States," the State Department said. "Beginning in late July 2022, the FBI penetrated Hive’s computer networks, obtained its decryption keys, and offered them to victims worldwide, preventing victims from having to pay up to $130 million in ransoms demanded."

(Writing by Paul Grant; Editing by Susan Heavey)