The LockBit story: Why the ransomware affiliate model can turn takedowns into disruptions

In ancient Greek mythos, the mighty Hercules faced a seemingly insurmountable challenge when he encountered the Lernaean Hydra. This fearsome serpent had a terrifying ability: For every head that Hercules severed, two more would spring forth, creating a never-ending cycle of regrowth and renewal...

LockBit Ransomware Hacker Ordered to Pay $860,000 After Guilty Plea in Canada

A 34-year-old Russian-Canadian national has been sentenced to nearly four years in jail in Canada for his participation in the LockBit global ransomware operation. Mikhail Vasiliev, an Ontario resident, was originally arrested in November 2022 and charged by the U.S. Department of Justice DoJ wit...

LockBit Affiliate Sentenced to 4 Years in Canada, Faces Extradition

By Deeba Ahmed Mikhail Vasiliev, a Russian-Canadian citizen faces four years in a Canadian prison and is likely to be extradited to the US after completing his sentence. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: LockBit Affiliate Sentenced to 4 Years in Canada, Faces Extradition...

EquiLend Employee Data Breached After January Ransomware Attack

By Waqas Some reports suggest that LockBit ransomware gang is behing the EquiLend data breach. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: EquiLend Employee Data Breached After January Ransomware Attack...

ALPHV ransomware gang fakes own death, fools no one

For the second time in only four months, all is not well on the ALPHV aka BlackCat ransomware gangs dark web site. Gone are the lists of compromised victims. In their place, a veritable garden of law enforcement badges has sprouted beneath the ominous message "THIS WEBSITE HAS BEEN SEIZED." The...

No “Apple magic” as 11% of macOS detections last year came from malware

We’re going to let you in on a little cybersecurity secret… There’s malware on Mac computers. There pretty much always has been. As revealed in our 2024 ThreatDown State of Malware report, a full 11% of all detections recorded by Malwarebytes on Mac computers in 2023 were for different variants o...

Attacks, Vulnerabilities and Actors 26 February to 3 March 2024

For a detailed threat digest, download the pdf file here Summary HiveForce Labs recently made several significant discoveries in the realm of cybersecurity threats. In the past week alone, a total of eight attacks were executed, twelve vulnerabilities were uncovered, and six active adversaries we...

Fulton County, Security Experts Call LockBit’s Bluff

The ransomware group LockBit told officials with Fulton County, Ga. they could expect to see their internal documents published online this morning unless the county paid a ransom demand. LockBit removed Fulton Countys listing from its victim shaming website this morning, claiming the county had...

The Mysterious Case of the Missing Trump Trial Ransomware Leak

The notorious LockBit gang promised a Georgia court leak "that could affect the upcoming US election.” It didn't materialize—but the story may not be over yet...

FBI Warns U.S. Healthcare Sector of Targeted BlackCat Ransomware Attacks

The U.S. government is warning about the resurgence of BlackCat aka ALPHV ransomware attacks targeting the healthcare sector as recently as this month. "Since mid-December 2023, of the nearly 70 leaked victims, the healthcare sector has been the most commonly victimized," the government said in a...

LockBit’s Resurgence After Operation Cronos

Summary: LockBit ransomware, previously known as "ABCD," remains a significant threat despite the recent takedown of its operations by global law enforcement. It reemerged within 4 days and its Affiliates were found exploiting vulnerabilities in ScreenConnect to install LockBit ransomware and...

LockBit Ransomware Gang Returns, Taunts FBI and Vows Data Leaks

By Waqas LockBit ransomware gang relaunches operation after law enforcement hacked its servers, threatening to target government entities more now. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: LockBit Ransomware Gang Returns, Taunts FBI and Vows Data Leaks...

A week in security (February 19 – February 25)

Last week on Malwarebytes Labs: Joomla! patches XSS flaws that could lead to remote code execution Update now! ConnectWise ScreenConnect vulnerability needs your attention Why ransomware gangs love using RMM tools—and how to stop them Signal to shield user phone numbers by default Vibrator virus...

LockBit Ransomware Group Resurfaces After Law Enforcement Takedown

The threat actors behind the LockBit ransomware operation have resurfaced on the dark web using new infrastructure, days after an international law enforcement exercise seized control of its servers. To that end, the notorious group has moved its data leak portal to a new .onion address on the TO...

FBI’s LockBit Takedown Postponed a Ticking Time Bomb in Fulton County, Ga.

The FBIs takedown of the LockBit ransomware group last week came as LockBit was preparing to release sensitive data stolen from government computer systems in Fulton County, Ga. But LockBit is now regrouping, and the gang says it will publish the stolen Fulton County data on March 2 unless paid a...

U.S. Offers $15 Million Bounty to Hunt Down LockBit Ransomware Leaders

The U.S. State Department has announced monetary rewards of up to $15 million for information that could lead to the identification of key leaders within the LockBit ransomware group and the arrest of any individual participating in the operation. "Since January 2020, LockBit actors have executed...

LockBit Attempts to Stay Afloat With a New Version

This research is the result of our collaboration with the National Crime Agency in the United Kingdom, who took action against LockBit as part of Operation Cronos, an international effort resulting in the undermining of its operations...

Law enforcement trolls LockBit, reveals massive takedown

In an act of exquisite trolling, the UKs National Crime Agency NCA has announced further details about its disruption of the LockBit ransomware group by using the groups own dark web website. The LockBit dark web site has a new look Since the demise of Conti in 2022, LockBit has been unchallenged...

Feds Seize LockBit Ransomware Websites, Offer Decryption Tools, Troll Affiliates

U.S. and U.K. authorities have seized the darknet websites run by LockBit, a prolific and destructive ransomware group that has claimed more than 2,000 victims worldwide and extorted over $120 million in payments. Instead of listing data stolen from ransomware victims who didnt pay, LockBits vict...

NCA’s LockBit Takedown: Source Code, Arrests and Recovery Tool Revealed

By Waqas To date, the LockBit ransomware gang targeted over 2,000 victims and received more than $120 million in ransom payments. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: NCAs LockBit Takedown: Source Code, Arrests and Recovery Tool Revealed...