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Ransomware Blog

Keeping you updated on the latest ransomware attack vectors, strains, decryptors, families and trends to help you avoid becoming infected.

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Ransomware Hits Fortnite Players

Aug 21, 2019 4:21:42 PM By Stu Sjouwerman
DarkReading reports: "Ransomware masquerading as game "cheats" is hitting Fortnite players. Fortunately, there are ways to recover without paying a ransom." Similar to phishing attacks on ...
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Is The Ransomware Debate Over? To Pay Or Not To Pay, The Conference Of Mayors Made Up Their Mind

Aug 21, 2019 6:59:56 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
The long-standing argument over whether or not to pay may have come to an end, with a resolution from the U.S. Conference of Mayors calling on cities to not pay up. 
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U.S. Government Stresses the Need for Cybersecurity Awareness and Education in Light of Ransomware Attacks on Government Entities

Aug 20, 2019 4:59:30 PM By Stu Sjouwerman
In light of the recent string of attacks that seem to be targeting government agencies and municipalities, a new multi-agency press release provides guidance on how to be resilient.
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Three Lessons from a Recent MegaCortex Ransomware Phishing Attack

Aug 12, 2019 6:55:16 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
The MegaCortex strain of ransomware has been used in criminal campaigns targeting businesses as opposed to private individuals. The QuickBooks cloud-hosting firm iNSYNQ, has sustained ...
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Varieties of Extortion Experience

Aug 10, 2019 11:26:07 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
We are all familiar with ransomware and its increasingly dangerous cousin, wiper malware. The first encrypts your files and demands ransom payments in exchange for the decryption key. The ...
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GermanWiper Ransomware Hits Germany Hard, Destroys Files But Asks For A Ransom

Aug 2, 2019 6:35:55 PM By Stu Sjouwerman
For the past week, a new ransomware strain has been wreaking havoc across Germany. Named GermanWiper, this ransomware doesn't encrypt files but instead it rewrites their content with ...
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New Ransomware Strain Spreads Via SMS

Jul 30, 2019 6:11:55 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
A new Android ransomware strain was discovered by ESET researchers. It uses the victim's contact list to spread further using SMS messages that have malicious links.
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Two Puerto Rico Hospitals Hit With Ransomware That Encrypts 520,000 Patient Records

Jul 29, 2019 7:30:34 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
The two hospitals were hit by ransomware infections and are one of the largest data breaches reported by the U.S. Department of Health. This particular incident encrypted all kinds of ...
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Here Is Some Great InfoSec Budget Ammo From UBS

Jul 27, 2019 7:19:40 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
A KnowBe4 employee forwarded this PDF to me. There is a very interesting point in here: your cybersecurity practices affect the valuation of your company. That should get the attention of ...
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This Year, Phishing Causes Losses of $17,700 per minute And Ransomware Attacks Will Cost $22,184 Per Minute

Jul 25, 2019 10:37:42 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
Global losses to cybercrime total $1.5 trillion per year, which amounts to $2.9 million per minute, a new report by RiskIQ shows. Some of the largest companies are losing $25 each minute ...
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Ransomware Attacks Costs Nearly Triple in 2019 to over $36K Per Attack

Jul 24, 2019 4:40:39 PM By Stu Sjouwerman
The latest data from ransomware recovery vendor, Coveware, outlines the current state of the cost, duration, and recovery rate of ransomware attacks today.
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Is ‘REvil’ the New GandCrab Ransomware?

Jul 15, 2019 3:20:04 PM By Stu Sjouwerman
Brian Krebs wrote: "The cybercriminals behind the GandCrab ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) offering recently announced they were closing up shop and retiring after having allegedly earned ...
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[Heads-up] New eCh0raix Ransomware Strain Targets NAS Devices

Jul 12, 2019 9:58:00 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
ITPro Today reported: "The eCh0raix ransomware uses a brute-force credential attack to gain access to data stored in QNAP NAS devices.
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Pay or Not Pay the Ransom? What’s Your Opinion?

Jul 11, 2019 4:51:24 PM By Stu Sjouwerman
The debate over whether to pay or not to pay the ransom once your system is encrypted is heating up. Yesterday, the US Conference of Mayors approved a resolution coming down in favor of ...
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Effects of Ransomware Don’t End With the Ransom

Jul 11, 2019 4:36:46 PM By Stu Sjouwerman
A Florida city is still struggling to recover from a ransomware attack two weeks after the city paid the ransom, according to the New York Times. The attack began after a city employee ...
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Brand-New Ransomware Simulator Tool Now with Two New Ransomware Scenarios

Jul 11, 2019 7:44:54 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
The bad guys are continuing to evolve their approach to evading detection. That’s why we’ve updated our Ransomware Simulation tool “RanSim” to include two new ransomware scenarios!  These ...
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Globally, One-Third of Organizations Experience Ransomware Attacks Weekly

Jul 3, 2019 10:44:18 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
The latest data from Australian telecommunications provider Telstra shows ransomware is running rampant, with security breaches not far behind in frequency.
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Which Of The Four Types of Social Engineering Is The Most Damaging?

Jun 27, 2019 11:38:43 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
Cybercriminals know that targeted social engineering attacks lead to the highest payoffs, so the frequency and sophistication of these attacks is guaranteed to increase, writes Jasmine ...
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UK Forensic Crime Labs Shut Down Due To Ransomware Attack

Jun 22, 2019 10:48:19 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
Every police force across England and Wales has been forced to prioritize evidence for forensic testing following a criminal cyber attack affecting one of the primary forensic service ...
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Maryland governor signs order to boost cybersecurity after Baltimore ransomware attack

Jun 20, 2019 10:34:50 AM By Stu Sjouwerman
The Hill reported: "Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) on Tuesday signed an executive order aimed at strengthening the state’s cybersecurity capabilities, a month after a debilitating ...
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