Maze Ransomware Now Available for Attack Simulation

Remote Work and Increased Cyberattacks While the world implements social distancing and turns its eyes toward the internet in search of the latest news on the COVID-19 pandemic, hackers are seizing the opportunity and increasing phishing campaigns and other cyberattacks.

Topics: ransomware

Threat Runner Update: Ryuk Ransomware Simulation Now Available

You may have heard that employees of the City of New Orleans were alarmed a few weeks ago by a booming voice on the overhead speaker system of City Hall. The voice was notifying them to unplug and disconnect all devices, including cell phones. The City later discovered it had suffered a ransomware attack, becoming one of many recent victims of Ryuk. 

Topics: ransomware, threat runner

Fear and Prosecution in Ransomware Operations

When a new ransomware variant reveals itself, there's an intense effort put towards reverse engineering the malicious software ("malware"). As I've discussed previously, reverse engineering is the process of analyzing software to determine its capabilities, how it works, and the design decisions that went into its creation. This process allows for quick identification of "indicators of compromise", unique changes made to the infected system by the malicious software. These indicators can be used to detect the presence of ransomware on systems, ideally before it has a negative impact on your network.

Topics: ransomware, Attack Surface, Reverse Engineering

Ransomware Worms Force Your Hand: Patch or Layer Security

Friday, May 12th, the “WannaCry” network worm joined the ranks of Conficker and Code Red. It’s infected tens of thousands of systems worldwide, and climbing. Among those victimized were England’s National Health Service, automobile manufacturers, and government systems. The worm’s ominous red ransom screen, informing the user that all files have been encrypted, was found not only on users’ desktops, but also on ATM screens, parking meters, digital billboards, and industrial control systems interfaces.

Topics: ransomware, Attack Surface, WannaCry

A Dangerous Shift in Ransomware Targeting

There’s good news for commentators that really “phoned it in” on their 2017 predictions: ransomware is becoming even more of problem. While you’ll be hard pressed to find analysts who thought otherwise, the reason that malware has become more dangerous may be less obvious to those not in the trenches. It’s time to put the forecasts for 2017 aside and start looking at the reality of what’s being perpetrated against the victims of cybercrime this year.

Topics: cybersecurity, ransomware