Ransomware encrypts or steals data to disrupt operations and extort victims, making backups, access controls, and incident response essential.
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Background for this topic.
Ransomware is malware used to deny access to systems or data, usually by encrypting files and demanding payment for decryption. Many operations also steal sensitive information and threaten to publish it, so an attack can create both an availability crisis and a privacy or disclosure risk. Initial access may involve phishing, stolen credentials, exposed remote services, or exploitation of unpatched vulnerabilities; attackers may then move through the network before deploying the payload.
Defenses should combine vulnerability management, phishing-resistant authentication where practical, endpoint and network monitoring, and backups that are isolated from routine administrator access and regularly tested for recovery. Organizations should also limit privileges and segment critical systems to reduce the blast radius. An incident requires rapid containment, preservation of forensic evidence, restoration from known-good backups, and assessment of notification, legal, and regulatory obligations. Threat intelligence can help identify relevant criminal infrastructure or tactics, but it does not replace sound access control, patching, detection, and recovery practices.
Panels Unpack the Buzz Around AI, Future Trends for CISOsFrom the RSA Conference in San Francisco, five ISMG editors cover the major themes at the event including emerging threats related to AI and new AI-embedded cybersecurity solutions. Other hot topics included ransomware threats, nation-state attackers and the role of the CISO.
How Attacks Have Changed; New Insights Into How an Attack Affects the BusinessThe fifth annual Sophos State of Ransomware Report combines year-on-year insights with brand-new areas of study. It includes a deep dive into ransom demands and ransom payments and shines new light on the role of law enforcement in ransomware remediation.
Phones, Wi-Fi, Digital Payments Are Among the Affected SystemsThe city administration of Kansas's largest city shut down IT systems and switched to cash transactions in the wake of a ransomware attack detected on Sunday. Municipal officials from the city of Wichita said Tuesday that no timetable yet exists for the restoration of systems.
Russian National Faces US Criminal Indictment, SanctionsThe Russian national known as LockBitSupp, head of ransomware-as-a-service group LockBit, came under indictment Tuesday in U.S. federal court and faces sanctions from the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Prosecutors say LockBitSupp's real identity is Dmitry Yuryevich Khoroshev.
Ransomware, AI Technology and the Art of the Possible Are Hot Topics This YearISMG editors are live at RSA Conference 2024 in San Francisco with an overview of opening-day speakers and hot topics including the dismal ransomware landscape, the unbridled growth of AI, security product innovation and deals, and regulatory trends. Join us for daily updates from RSA.
International Police Operation Revives Seized LockBit Dark Web Leak SitePolice behind an international law enforcement operation targeting LockBit resurrected the leak site they seized earlier this year from the ransomware-as-a-service group and posted a countdown clock suggesting they will reveal the identity of LockBitSupp, the group's leader.