Mysterious New Ransomware Targets Industrial Control Systems

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The article below is a summary of several trusted sources and as a scientific reference for all of us

Mysterious New Ransomware Targets Industrial Control Systems

What industries are targeted by ransomware?

Over half of ransomware attacks are targeting one of three industries; banking, utilities and retail, according to analysis by cybersecurity researchers but they’ve also warned that all industries are at risk from attacks.

What industry was recently affected by ransomware?

Norway based AKVA Group, a global supplier of technology to the aquaculture industry revealed that they had been hit by a ransomware attack and that hackers were demanding a ransom.

What are the 4 most used vectors for ransomware?

There are a number of attack vectors ransomware can exploit to take over computers or servers. These are the four most common ways ransomware infects its victims.

1. Phishing emails

What are the top two targets for ransomware attacks?

Professional services, health care, and education were the most popular targets for ransomware in 2020, with attacks against health care rising 75% in October alone according to Kroll. These industries all deal with sensitive data, like financial information or personal identifiers, making them ideal targets.

What types of businesses are common ransomware targets?

Ransomware’s impact on the financial services sector has the potential to be widespread and catastrophic.

  • Education. The education sector has become one of the top ransomware targets in recent years. …
  • Retail. …
  • Business, professional and legal services. …
  • Central government. …
  • IT. …
  • Manufacturing. …
  • Energy and utilities infrastructure.

Which industry was targeted with the highest number of ransomware associated data extortion operations?

According to Becker’s Hospital Review, the first known ransomware attack occurred in 1989 and targeted the healthcare industry. 28 years later, the healthcare industry remains a top target for ransomware attacks.

What companies have been hacked 2021?

In this article, we’ll examine the top 5 security breaches of 2021 and detail the key takeaways for IT professionals.

  • March Microsoft Software Caused Data Breach. …
  • April Facebook Data Breach. …
  • May Colonial Pipeline. …
  • May JBS Ransomware Attack. …
  • July Kaseya Ransomware attack.

How many ransomware attacks were there in 2021?

Ransomware attacks rose by 92.7% in 2021 compared to 2020 levels, with 1,389 reported attacks in 2020 and 2,690 in 2021.

What big companies have been hacked recently?

The 64 Biggest Data Breaches Ranked by Impact

  • CAM4 data breach. Date: March 2020. …
  • 2. Yahoo data breach 2017. Date: October 2017. …
  • Aadhaar data breach. Date: March 2018. …
  • First American Financial Corp. data breach. …
  • LinkedIn data breach 2021. …
  • 7. Facebook data breach 2019. …
  • Yahoo data breach 2014. …
  • Starwood (Marriott) data breach.

What are the top 3 malware attacks?

Ransomware attack vectors and mitigations

The top three ways ransomware gets onto victims’ systems are phishing, Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) and credential abuse, and vulnerabilities.

What’s the most common way that users get infected with ransomware?

Ransomware is often spread through phishing emails that contain malicious attachments or through drive-by downloading. Drive-by downloading occurs when a user unknowingly visits an infected website and then malware is downloaded and installed without the user’s knowledge.

How do hackers install ransomware?

Ransomware enters your network in a variety of ways, the most popular is a download via a spam email attachment. The download then launches the ransomware program that attacks your system.

Which type of device is the top target for ransomware?

Smartphones also can be a subject to the target of Ransomware. In this scenario, the user is asked to pay a ransom in the form of bitcoin to unlock the system.

What are the two main types of ransomware?

In particular, two types of ransomware are very popular:

  • Locker ransomware. This type of malware blocks basic computer functions. …
  • Crypto ransomware. The aim of crypto ransomware is to encrypt your important data, such as documents, pictures and videos, but not to interfere with basic computer functions.

Why hospitals are the perfect targets for ransomware?

According to Smerz, hospitals are the perfect targets for ransomware threat actors. They have large amounts of data that can be encrypted and impact the hospitals’ ability to operate, dollars in the bank to pay the ransom, and a board that is not as tech-savvy as those in other industries.

What are the top 3 targeted industries?

Top Target Industries For Cyber Attack

  • Business.
  • Healthcare/Medical.
  • Banking/Credit/Financial.
  • Government/Military.
  • Education.
  • Energy/Utilities.

Who is attacked by ransomware?

Businesses and organizations from all different kinds of industries are targeted by ransomware attacks. One of the more surprising on the list this year was the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Who gets affected by ransomware?

Ransomware attacks target firms of all sizes5% or more of businesses in the top 10 industry sectors have been attackedand no size business, from small and medium-sized businesses to enterprises, is immune. Attacks are on the rise in every sector and in every size of business.

What are the biggest cyber threats in 2021?

Phishing emails, RDP exploitation, and exploitation of software vulnerabilities remained the top three initial infection vectors for ransomware incidents in 2021. Once a ransomware threat actor has gained code execution on a device or network access, they can deploy ransomware.

What is wicked panda?

Wicked Panda is a prolific cyber threat group that carries out Chinese state-sponsored espionage activity. They also carry out financially motivated activity often outside of state control. Wicked Panda typically employs spear-phishing emails with malicious attachments for the initial compromise of an attack.

What is the most popular ransomware?

Top 10 most well-known ransomware strains

  • Bad Rabbit.
  • Cryptolocker.
  • GoldenEye.
  • Jigsaw.
  • Locky.
  • Maze.
  • NotPetya.
  • Petya.

What are the top 3 biggest data breaches so far in 2020?

The Top 10 Most Significant Data Breaches Of 2020

  • Microsoft. In a January 2020 blog post, Microsoft said that an internal customer support database on which the company stored anonymized user analytics had been accidentally exposed online. …
  • MGM Resorts. …
  • Zoom. …
  • Magellan Health. …
  • Cognizant. …
  • Nintendo. …
  • Twitter. …
  • Whisper.

What was the biggest data breach in 2021?

The biggest data breaches of 2021

  • Comcast (1.5 billion)
  • Brazilian resident data leak (660 million)
  • Facebook (533 million)
  • LinkedIn (500 million)
  • Bykea (400 million)

Who is the best hacker in the world?

Top 10 Most Notorious Hackers of All Time

  • Kevin Mitnick. A seminal figure in American hacking, Kevin Mitnick got his career start as a teen. …
  • Anonymous. …
  • Adrian Lamo. …
  • Albert Gonzalez. …
  • Matthew Bevan and Richard Pryce. …
  • Jeanson James Ancheta. …
  • Michael Calce. …
  • Kevin Poulsen.

Why ransomware is increasing?

The increase in ransomware was linked to the rise in remote work and company employees working outside their office networks, the Guardian reported last year. Individual companies that pay ransomware demands could also be perpetuating that behavior, PBS reported.

Who is behind ransomware?

New analysis suggests that 74% of all money made through ransomware attacks in 2021 went to Russia-linked hackers. Researchers say more than $400 million worth of crypto-currency payments went to groups “highly likely to be affiliated with Russia”. Russia has denied accusations that it is harbouring cyber-criminals.

How many hack attempts a day?

By some counts, there are more than 2,200 cyberattacks per day. That equates to about one cyberattack every 39 seconds.

Which company data leaked this year 2021?

Acer. In October 2021, Acer confirmed that its servers were breached by a group of hackers called Desorden. They managed to steal over 60 gigabytes worth of data that contained sensitive information about millions of Acer’s customers like names, phone numbers of clients, and corporate financial data.

Which country has the most hackers?

China. By quite a significant margin, China houses the largest number of hackers on Earth.

What companies have been hacked 2022?

The Most Recent Data Breaches April 2022

  • April 2022: Block Confirms Cash App Data Breach. …
  • March 2022: Microsoft Breached by Lapsus$ Hacker Group. …
  • March 2022: Lapsus$ Group Breaches Authentication Company Okta. …
  • February 2022: Ottawa Freedom Convoy Donors Leaked via Christian Fundraising Platform.

What is the Zeus virus?

Zeus Virus (or Zeus Trojan malware) is a form of malicious software that targets Microsoft Windows and is often used to steal financial data.

What are the top five computer malware infections in 2021?

The respective indicators of compromise (IOCs) are provided to aid in detecting and preventing infections from these Top 10 Malware variants.

  • Snugy. …
  • ZeuS. …
  • Dridex. …
  • Nanocore. …
  • Gh0st. …
  • CoinMiner. …
  • Danabot. …
  • Mirai.

What is the latest computer virus 2021?

10 Dangerous Malwares to Watch Out for in 2021

  • COVID-19 Phishing Emails. While the world is coping with the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftereffects, hackers are taking the opportunity to target vulnerable individuals. …
  • OS Updates. …
  • Clop Ransomware. …
  • Gameover Zeus. …
  • Cryptojacking. …
  • AlienBot. …
  • REvil Ransomware. …
  • Ryuk Ransomware.

What is the best defense against ransomware?

Antivirus and Firewalls:

Install reputable anti-malware software and a firewall to ensure maximum security. Create a patch management policy where all systems are kept up to date with the latest software updates.

Who can fall victim to ransomware?

These attacks can affect businesses of any size, and even individuals can be targeted. No one seems immune, whether users of Microsoft Windows PCs, Macs, Linux, or other platforms, says Reid Goldsborough in his article Protecting Yourself From Ransomware. This is precisely why we feel the need to raise awareness.

Is there any solution for ransomware?

The fastest way to recover from ransomware is to simply restore your systems from backups. For this method to work, you must have a recent version of your data and applications that do not contain the ransomware you are currently infected with. Before restoration, make sure to eliminate the ransomware first.

What is the biggest weak point in information security?

1) Phishing Attacks

The biggest, most damaging and most widespread threat facing small businesses are phishing attacks. Phishing accounts for 90% of all breaches that organizations face, they’ve grown 65% over the last year, and they account for over $12 billion in business losses.

Is IT possible to decrypt ransomware files?

It’s possible to decrypt files encrypted by ransomware with several tools available for free online. However, not all of these tools are guaranteed to work for the particular strain of ransomware on your computer. Therefore, you’ll need to start by identifying the ransomware.

Should you pay ransomware?

Law enforcement agencies recommend not paying, because doing so encourages continued criminal activity. In some cases, paying the ransom could even be illegal, because it provides funding for criminal activity.

Is a device or software that is designed to block unauthorized access?

A firewall is a security device computer hardware or software that can help protect your network by filtering traffic and blocking outsiders from gaining unauthorized access to the private data on your computer.

What types of businesses are common ransomware targets?

Ransomware’s impact on the financial services sector has the potential to be widespread and catastrophic.

  • Education. The education sector has become one of the top ransomware targets in recent years. …
  • Retail. …
  • Business, professional and legal services. …
  • Central government. …
  • IT. …
  • Manufacturing. …
  • Energy and utilities infrastructure.

What type of breach is ransomware CIA?

A data breach attacks the confidentiality of your data. A ransomware incident attacks the availability of your information systems.

What is the simplest type of ransomware?

Crypto Ransomware

The easiest way to restore data is to use a decryption key, which is what attackers offer in exchange for a ransom. Crypto ransomware typically does not encrypt all data on a device. Instead, the program silently scans the computer for valuable data and encrypts only those files.

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