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.
The ransomware gang recruits high-profile affiliates from LockBit and ALPHV As RansomHub continues to scoop up top talent from the fallen LockBit and ALPHV operations while accruing a smorgasbord of victims, security and law enforcement agencies in the US feel it's time to issue an official warning about the group that's gunning for ransomware supremacy.…
French police reckon financial system targeted during Summer Games Nearly four weeks after the cyberattack on dozens of French national museums during the Olympic Games, the Brain Cipher ransomware group claims responsibility for the incident and says 300 GB of data will be leaked later today.…
The government-backed crew also enjoys ransomware as a side hustle Iranian government-backed cybercriminals have been hacking into US and foreign networks as recently as this month to steal sensitive data and deploy ransomware, and they're breaking in via vulnerable VPN and firewall devices from Check Point, Citrix, Palo Alto Networks and other manufacturers, according to Uncle Sam.…
No word yet on if ransomware is to blame The Port of Seattle, which operates the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, is investigating a "possible cyberattack" after computer outages disrupted the airport's operations and delayed flights.…
Plus: Microsoft issues workaround for dual-boot crashes; ARRL cops to ransom payment, and more Infosec in brief Deniss Zolotarjovs, a suspected member of the Russian Karakurt ransomware gang, has been charged in a US court with allegedly conspiring to commit money laundering, wire fraud and Hobbs Act extortion.…