Xinhua file photos of Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and U.S. President Joe Biden

US President Joe Biden said Wednesday he is "looking" at possible retaliation after the White House linked Russia to a cyberattack against global meat processing giant JBS.

Asked by a reporter if he would take action against Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he will meet for a summit in Geneva later in June, Biden said: "We're looking closely at that issue."

The ransomware attack on a US subsidiary of Brazilian-owned JBS has again prompted accusations that Russia is at least harboring cybercriminals. Similar suspicions were raised after ransomware hackers forced the temporary shutdown of the huge Colonial fuel pipeline in the eastern US in May.

Asked if Putin is testing him ahead of their summit, Biden said "no."

The Federal Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday attributed the attack to "REvil and Sodinokibi," which experts have said are two names for the same hacking group with ties to Russia, and said it was "working diligently to bring the threat actors to justice."

The White House says Biden will bring up US concerns during the summit on June 16, as well as at earlier summits with allies in the G7 group, the European Union and NATO.

"We expect this to be an issue of discussion throughout the president's trip," Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters.

The White House has not blamed the Kremlin directly, only suggesting that criminal groups are operating from inside Russia. But Psaki said "responsible states do not harbor" cybercriminals.

For its part, Russia said Wednesday it would be open to any US request for help in investigating the cyberattack.

JBS is a sprawling meat supplier with operations in the US, Australia, Canada, Europe, Mexico, New Zealand and Britain.

AFP