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.
Today's Week in Ransomware brings you the latest news and stories about the cyberattacks, new tactics, and reports related to ransomware operations. [...]
Colombian energy company Empresas Públicas de Medellín (EPM) suffered a BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware attack on Monday, disrupting the company's operations and taking down online services. [...]
Microsoft has fixed a security vulnerability used by threat actors to circumvent the Windows SmartScreen security feature and deliver payloads in Magniber ransomware attacks. [...]
The dark web is getting darker as cybercrime gangs increasingly shop their malware, phishing, and ransomware tools on illegal cybercrime markets. [...]
Microsoft has revoked several Microsoft hardware developer accounts after drivers signed through their profiles were used in cyberattacks, including ransomware incidents. [...]
The Department of Finance in California has been the target of a cyberattack now claimed by the LockBit ransomware gang. [...]
The Play ransomware operation has claimed responsibility for a recent cyberattack on the Belgium city of Antwerp. [...]
Security researchers have noticed a spike in devices infected with the TrueBot malware downloader created by a Russian-speaking hacking group known as Silence. [...]
Security researchers have noticed a spike in devices infected with the TrueBot malware downloader created by a Russian-speaking hacking group known as Silence. [...]