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.
While the week started slowly, it turned into a big ransomware mess, with attacks striking a big blow at businesses running VMware ESXi servers. [...]
Admins, hosting providers, and the French Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-FR) warn that attackers actively target VMware ESXi servers unpatched against a two-year-old remote code execution vulnerability to deploy ransomware. [...]
The LockBit ransomware gang has claimed responsibility for the cyberattack on ION Group, a UK-based software company whose products are used by financial institutions, banks, and corporations for trading, investment management, and market analytics. [...]
The LockBit ransomware gang has again started using encryptors based on other operations, this time switching to one based on the leaked source code for the Conti ransomware. [...]
A relatively new ransomware operation known as Nevada seems to grow its capabilities quickly as security researchers noticed improved functionality for the locker targeting Windows and VMware ESXi systems. [...]
Arnold Clark, self-described as Europe's largest independent car retailer, is notifying some customers that their personal information has been stolen in a December 23 cyberattack claimed by the Play ransomware group. [...]
Microsoft revealed today that its security teams are tracking more than 100 threat actors deploying ransomware during attacks. [...]