The number of companies that had their information uploaded onto dedicated leak sites (DLS) between the second half of the financial year (H2) 2021 and the first half of the financial year (H1) 2022 was up 22%, year on year, to 2,886, which amounts to an average of eight companies having their data leaked online every day, says a recent report, Operated as a private Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), Conti released a data leak site with twenty-six victims on August 25, 2020. In March, Nemtycreated a data leak site to publish the victim's data. Learn about our relationships with industry-leading firms to help protect your people, data and brand. When first starting, the ransomware used the .locked extension for encrypted files and switched to the .pysa extension in November 2019. Like with most cybercrime statistics, 2021 is a record year in terms of how many new websites of this kind appeared on the dark web. Learn about our global consulting and services partners that deliver fully managed and integrated solutions. Payment for delete stolen files was not received. Collaboration between eCrime operators is not uncommon for example, WIZARD SPIDER has a historically profitable arrangement involving the distribution of. In case of not contacting us in 3 business days this data will be published on a special website available for public view," states Sekhmet's ransom note. Figure 3. Workers at the site of the oil spill from the Keystone pipeline near Washington, Kansas (Courtesy of EPA) LINCOLN Thousands of cubic yards of oil-soaked soil from a pipeline leak in Kansas ended up in a landfill in the Omaha area, and an environmental watchdog wants the state to make sure it isn . Using WhatLeaks you can see your IP address, country, country code, region, city, latitude, longitude, timezone, ISP (Internet Service Provider), and DNS details of the server your browser makes requests to WhatLeaks with. We found stolen databases for sale on both of the threat actors dark web pages, which detailed the data volume and the organisations name. Soon after launching, weaknesses were found in the ransomware that allowed a freedecryptor to be released. These walls of shame are intended to pressure targeted organisations into paying the ransom, but they can also be used proactively. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. Proprietary research used for product improvements, patents, and inventions. This feature allows users to bid for leak data or purchase the data immediately for a specified Blitz Price. Payments are only accepted in Monero (XMR) cryptocurrency. This ransomware started operating in Jutne 2020 and is distributed after a network is compromised by the TrickBot trojan. SunCrypt is a ransomware that has been operating since the end of 2019, but have recently become more active after joining the 'Maze Cartel.'. Some of the most common of these include: . Nemty also has a data leak site for publishing the victim's data but it was, recently, unreachable. SunCrypt was also more aggressive in its retaliation against companies that denied or withheld information about a breach: not only did they upload stolen data onto their victim blog, they also identified targeted organisations that did not comply on a Press Release section of their website. The DNS leak test site generates queries to pretend resources under a randomly generated, unique subdomain. WebRTC and Flash request IP addresses outside of your proxy, socks, or VPN connections are the leading cause of IP leaks. this website. This episode drew renewed attention to double extortion tactics because not only was a security vendor being targeted, it was an apparent attempt to silence a prominent name in the security industry. Employee data, including social security numbers, financial information and credentials. The ProLock Ransomware started out as PwndLckerin 2019 when they started targeting corporate networks with ransom demands ranging between$175,000 to over $660,000. Law enforcementseized the Netwalker data leak and payment sites in January 2021. To change your DNS settings in Windows 10, do the following: Go to the Control Panel. Torch.onion and thehiddenwiki.onion also might be a good start if you're not scared of using the tor network. This method involves both encrypting a victim organization's environment and also exfiltrating data with the threat to leak it if the extortion demand is not paid. what is a dedicated leak sitewhat is a dedicated leak sitewhat is a dedicated leak site Once the auction expires, PINCHY SPIDER typically provides a link to the companys data, which can be downloaded from a public file distribution website.. spam campaigns. The conventional tools we rely on to defend corporate networks are creating gaps in network visibility and in our capabilities to secure them. Learn about the human side of cybersecurity. This list will be updated as other ransomware infections begin to leak data. Read the first blog in this two-part series: Double Trouble: Ransomware with Data Leak Extortion, Part 1., To learn more about how to incorporate intelligence on threat actors into your security strategy, visit the, CROWDSTRIKE FALCON INTELLIGENCE Threat Intelligence page, Get a full-featured free trial of CrowdStrike Falcon Prevent, How Principal Writer Elly Searle Makes the Highly Technical Seem Completely Human, Duck Hunting with Falcon Complete: A Fowl Banking Trojan Evolves, Part 2. Follow us on LinkedIn or subscribe to our RSS feed to make sure you dont miss our next article. Dedicated IP servers are available through Trust.Zone, though you don't get them by default. Malware. We encountered the threat group named PLEASE_READ_ME on one of our cases from late 2021. Hackers tend to take the ransom and still publish the data. Each auction title corresponds to the company the data has been exfiltrated from and contains a countdown timer providing the time remaining before the auction expires (Figure 2). Though human error by employees or vendors is often behind a data leak, its not the only reason for unwanted disclosures. What makes this DLS interesting is an indication that the threat actors were likely issuing two ransom demands: one for the victim to obtain the decryption key and a second to delete the exfiltrated data from the DLS. Similar to many other ransomware operators, the threat actors added a link to their dedicated leak site (DLS), as shown in Figure 1. The insidious initiative is part of a new strategy to leverage ransoms by scaring victims with the threat of exposing sensitive information to the public eye. Starting last year, ransomware operators have escalated their extortion strategies by stealing files from victims before encrypting their data. Call us now. DoppelPaymer launched a dedicated leak site called "Dopple Leaks." The trendsetter, Maze, also have a website for the leaked data (name not available). On January 26, 2023, the Department of Justice of the United States announced they disrupted Hive operations by seizing two back-end servers belonging to the group in Los Angeles, CA. By: Paul Hammel - February 23, 2023 7:22 pm. Other groups, like Lockbit, Avaddon, REvil, and Pysa, all hacked upwards of 100 companies and sold the stolen information on the darknet. The Everest Ransomware is a rebranded operation previously known as Everbe. Disarm BEC, phishing, ransomware, supply chain threats and more. Misconfigured S3 buckets are so common that there are sites that scan for misconfigured S3 buckets and post them for anyone to review. Our dark web monitoring solution automatically detects nefarious activity and exfiltrated content on the deep and dark web. Copyright 2022 Asceris Ltd. All rights reserved. The FBI dismantled the network of the prolific Hive ransomware gang and seized infrastructure in Los Angeles that was used for the operation. Last year, the data of 1335 companies was put up for sale on the dark web. If you are the target of an active ransomware attack, please request emergency assistance immediately. Industry professionals comment on the recent disruption of the Hive ransomware operation and its hacking by law enforcement. By definition, phishing is "a malicious technique used by cybercriminals to gather sensitive information (credit card data, usernames, and passwords, etc.) In August 2020, operators of SunCrypt ransomware claimed they were a new addition to the Maze Cartel the claim was refuted by TWISTED SPIDER. "Your company network has been hacked and breached. AKO ransomware began operating in January 2020 when they started to target corporate networks with exposed remote desktop services. So, wouldn't this make the site easy to take down, and leave the operators vulnerable? This is a 13% decrease when compared to the same activity identified in Q2. Our experience with two threat groups, PLEASE_READ_ME and SunCrypt, highlight the different ways groups approach the extortion process and the choices they make around the publication of data. Sign up for our newsletter and learn how to protect your computer from threats. A message on the site makes it clear that this is about ramping up pressure: Inaction endangers both your employees and your guests . Ransomware Once the auction expires, PINCHY SPIDER typically provides a link to the companys data, which can be downloaded from a public file distribution website., Enter the Labyrinth: Maze Cartel Encourages Criminal Collaboration, In June 2020, TWISTED SPIDER, the threat actor operating. Security solutions such as the. We share our recommendations on how to use leak sites during active ransomware incidents. The first part of this two-part blog series explored the origins of ransomware, BGH and extortion and introduced some of the criminal adversaries that are currently dominating the data leak extortion ecosystem. This blog explores operators of, ) demanding two ransoms from victims, PINCHY SPIDERs auctioning of stolen data and TWISTED SPIDERs creation of the self-named Maze Cartel., Twice the Price: Ako Operators Demand Separate Ransoms. Most recently, Snake released the patient data for the French hospital operator Fresenius Medical Care. First seen in February 2020, Ragnar Locker was the first to heavily target and terminate processes used by Managed Service Providers (MSP). To find out more about any of our services, please contact us. Become a channel partner. Idaho Power Company in Boise, Idaho, was victim to a data leak after they sold used hard drives containing sensitive files and confidential information on eBay. Sodinokibiburst into operation in April 2019 and is believed to be the successor of GandCrab, whoshut down their ransomware operationin 2019. This protects PINCHY SPIDER from fraudulent bids, while providing confidence to legitimate bidders that they will have their money returned upon losing a bid. ransomware, introduced a new twist to their ransomware operations by announcing the creation of the Maze Cartel a collaboration between certain ransomware operators that results in victims exfiltrated information being hosted on multiple DLSs, as shown in Figure 4. Edme is an incident response analyst at Asceris working on business email compromise cases, ransomware investigations, and tracking cyber threat groups and malware families. Similarly, there were 13 new sites detected in the second half of 2020. The payment that was demanded doubled if the deadlines for payment were not met. However, the apparent collaboration between members of the Maze Cartel is more unusual and has the potential to alter the TTPs used in the ransomware threat landscape. ThunderX is a ransomware operation that was launched at the end of August 2020. The Login button can be used to log in as a previously registered user, and the Registration button provides a generated username and password for the auction session. Effective Security Management, 5e,teaches practicing security professionals how to build their careers by mastering the fundamentals of good management. Usually, cybercriminals demand payment for the key that will allow the company to decrypt its files. However, it's likely the accounts for the site's name and hosting were created using stolen data. Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing, This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. All rights reserved. Not just in terms of the infrastructure legacy, on-premises, hybrid, multi-cloud, and edge. It might seem insignificant, but its important to understand the difference between a data leak and a data breach. Security eNewsletter & Other eNews Alerts, Taking a Personal Approach to Identity Will Mitigate Fraud Risk & Ensure a Great Customer Experience, The Next Frontier of Security in the Age of Cloud, Effective Security Management, 7th Edition. The gang is reported to have created "data packs" for each employee, containing files related to their hotel employment. One of the threat actor posts (involving a U.S.-based engineering company) included the following comment: Got only payment for decrypt 350,000$ Security solutions such as the CrowdStrike Falcon endpoint protection platform come with many preventive features to protect against threats like those outlined in this blog series. Babuk Locker is a new ransomware operation that launched at the beginning of 2021 and has since amassed a small list of victims worldwide. Instead of hosting the stolen data on a site that deals with all the gang's victims, the victim had a website dedicated to them. Maze ransomware is single-handedly to blame for the new tactic of stealing files and using them as leverage to get a victimto pay. Our mission at Asceris is to reduce the financial and business impact of cyber incidents and other adverse events. Luckily, we have concrete data to see just how bad the situation is. 2 - MyVidster. But in this case neither of those two things were true. For those interesting in reading more about this ransomware, CERT-FR has a great report on their TTPs. Dedicated DNS servers with a . If you do not agree to the use of cookies, you should not navigate Avaddon ransomware began operating in June2020 when they launched in a spam campaign targeting users worldwide. Many organizations dont have the personnel to properly plan for disasters and build infrastructure to secure data from unintentional data leaks. Researchers only found one new data leak site in 2019 H2. Activate Malwarebytes Privacy on Windows device. Less-established operators can host data on a more-established DLS, reducing the risk of the data being taken offline by a public hosting provider. [deleted] 2 yr. ago. and cookie policy to learn more about the cookies we use and how we use your Collaboration between operators may also place additional pressure on the victim to meet the ransom demand, as the stolen data has gained increased publicity and has already been shared at least once. This includes collaboration between ransomware groups, auctioning leaked data and demanding not just one ransom for the ransomware decryptor but also a second ransom to ensure stolen data is deleted. Learn more about information security and stay protected. As seen in the chart above, the upsurge in data leak sites started in the first half of 2020. In May 2020, CrowdStrike Intelligence observed an update to the Ako ransomware portal. Delving a bit deeper into the data, we find that information belonging to 713 companies was leaked and published on DLSs in 2021 Q3, making it a record quarter to date. Sign up now to receive the latest notifications and updates from CrowdStrike. Atlas VPN analysis builds on the recent Hi-Tech Crime Trends report by Group-IB. Subscribe to the SecurityWeek Daily Briefing and get the latest content delivered to your inbox. The overall trend of exfiltrating, selling and outright leaking victim data will likely continue as long as organizations are willing to pay ransoms. The cybersecurity firm Mandiant found themselves on the LockBit 2.0 wall of shame on the dark web on 6 June 2022. In Los Angeles that was used for product improvements, patents, and leave the operators vulnerable change. 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