First in the chart is Akira ransomware. It steals sensitive data and encrypts it, rendering it inaccessible to the victim. Threat actors then demand a ransom for decryption and threaten to leak the stolen data on the dark web if their demands are not met. It was first seen in early 2023.

Second in the chart is Medusalocker. Initially reported in 2019. The Medusalocker threat actors are ransomware as a service. They predominantly rely on vulnerabilities in Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to access victims’ networks. Once they gained access to the victim’s network, the actors encrypt the victim’s data and leave ransom note with communication instructions in every folder containing an encrypted file. A new variance appeared in September 2023 which upgraded its extortion from single to double extortion (data theft and encrypted file) and triple extortion possible as well (data theft, encrypted file, and Denial of Service).

Third in the chart is Black Hunt. It is a ransomware that blocks access to files by encrypting them, modifies filenames of all encrypted files, changes the desktop wallpaper, and drops “#BlackHunt_ReadMe.hta” and “#BlackHunt_ReadMe.txt”. It is prevalent in September 2023 through emails and malicious websites via drive by downloads.

So how do we protect our organization as well as our members? We use a combination of cybersecurity protection, cybersecurity awareness, and the NIST framework.

Now, this concludes the cyber awareness month. Hopefully, the posts have been useful and if you like them, please follow our LinkedIn Page. Thank you and see you next month for the month of identifying business assets to improve your cybersecurity posture.

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