Biden hints at retaliation for Russian ransomware attacks

"Yes," he told reporters when asked if that would be an appropriate way to respond to such attacks.

Biden also said that he expects "some cooperation" when a joint Russian-American committee on the cyber issue meets next month.

Biden spoke to journalists as he was boarding Air Force One on his way to his home in Delaware.

Earlier on Friday Biden said he had pressed Russian President Vladimir Putin to act against groups conducting ransomware attacks from his territory.

Ransomware - a breed of malicious software which hackers use to hold data hostage in exchange for payment - has become an increasingly powerful scourge for businesses across the world.

Cybercriminals have used it to paralyze thousands of American organizations, setting off a series of increasingly high-profile crises.

Many of the gangs carrying out the ransomware attacks are alleged by American officials and cybersecurity researchers to be operating out of Russia with the awareness, if not the approval, of the government there.