A recently discovered ransomware-as-a-service gang dubbed AvosLocker is recruiting affiliates and partners, including "pentesters" and "access brokers," on darknet forums, according to the security firm Malwarebytes.
Good news on the ransomware front: The average ransom paid by a victim dropped by 38% from Q1 to Q2, reaching $136,576, reports ransomware incident response firm Coveware. In addition, fewer victims are paying a ransom simply for a promise from attackers to delete stolen data.
As ransomware continues to pummel organizations, if they do get hit, then from an incident response standpoint, what are the essential steps they should take to smooth their recovery? Veteran ransomware-battler Fabian Wosar, CTO of Emsisoft, shares essential steps and guidance for recovery.
Remote management software vendor Kaseya has obtained a decryption tool for all organizations affected by the massive ransomware attack launched via its software. The tool should especially help the many small businesses still struggling to recover. Kaseya declined to comment on how it obtained the decryptor.
Saudi Aramco, one of the world's largest oil and natural gas firms, has confirmed that company data was leaked after one of its suppliers was breached. Extortionists are reportedly demanding a $50 million ransom - payable in monero cryptocurrency - for a promise to delete the stolen data.
What's up with REvil? Questions have been mounting since the notorious ransomware operation went quiet on July 13, not long after unleashing a mega-attack via remote management software vendor Kaseya's software. The Biden administration has welcomed REvil's online shutdown but says it doesn't know the cause.
Marcus Christian, a former executive assistant U.S. attorney, implores businesses to not immediately abandon their incident response plans once it appears a suspected incident is resolved.
Campbell Conroy & O’Neil, a Boston-based law firm that serves Fortune 500 firms, including Apple and Pfizer, is continuing its investigation of a ransomware attack in February that resulted in unauthorized access to certain data about its clients.
The U.S. Transportation Security Administration issued a directive Tuesday requiring owners and operators of oil and natural gas pipelines to implement several cybersecurity controls. Earlier, the TSA had issued new incident reporting requirements for these companies.
The blockchain analysis firm Elliptic offers a step-by-step case study, based on its research, of how one victim of the REvil ransomware gang negotiated a lower ransom payment. The study offers insights into how REvil operated before its online infrastructure disappeared last week.
The Biden administration formally accused China's Ministry of State Security of conducting a series of attacks against vulnerable Microsoft Exchange servers earlier this year that affected thousands of organizations. This group is also accused of carrying out ransomware and other cyber operations.
A greater level of cooperation is needed between the DOD and DHS to ensure that U.S. critical infrastructure is protected against various cyberthreats, according to an inspector general's report. The SolarWinds attack showed the need for more coordination between the two departments.
Now that the REvil ransomware gang has apparently shut down, victims are in a precarious situation. They must either rely on backups to restore data access or wait for the release of a decryptor, making sure they retain all encrypted files.
The gang behind the ransomware strain known as Mespinoza, aka PYSA, is targeting manufacturers, schools and others, mainly in the U.S. and U.K., demanding ransom payments as high as $1.6 million, according to Palo Alto Networks' Unit 42, which says the group leverages open-source tools.
This edition of the ISMG Security Report features an analysis of comments from the former head of Britain's GCHQ intelligence agency, Robert Hannigan, on the changing nature of ransomware attacks. Also featured: Disrupting the ransomware-as-a-service business model; supply chain security management tips.
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