Threat Spotlight: Ransomware Trends

Ransomware attacks have surged in 2021, with the number of attacks increasing dramatically and ransom amounts continuing to skyrocket. Cybercriminals are also expanding their targets, shifting their focus to our critical infrastructure and evolving into deep-rooted software supply chain attack campaigns, which can cause long-lasting devastation.

- Fleming Shi, Chief Technology Officer, Barracuda

The grim outlook for the future of ransomware leaves no one spared from financial damage or brand-crushing headlines. Ransomware criminals are penetrating the foundation of our digital economy, from trusted software vendors to IT service providers.

Many of these attacks are being led by a handful of high-profile ransomware gangs. Barracuda analysis of ransomware attacks that occurred between August 2020 and July 2021 showed that REvil accounted for 19% of attacks, and DarkSide is known to be the cause of 8%.

HIGHLIGHTED THREAT

Ransomware: Cybercriminals use malicious software, often delivered as an email attachment or link, to infect the network and lock email, data, and other critical files until a ransom is paid. These evolving and sophisticated attacks are damaging and costly. They can cripple day-to-day operations, cause chaos, and result in financial losses from downtime, ransom payments, recovery costs, and other unbudgeted and unanticipated expenses.

Recently, criminals have refined their tactics to create a double extortion scheme. They base their ransom demands on research they perform ahead of the attack. They steal sensitive data from their victims and demand payment in exchange for a promise to not publish or sell the data to other criminals. Since criminals cannot be trusted, victims who pay are often contacted several months later and asked for another payment to keep the stolen data secret. Some ransomware criminals will accept payment, but sell the data anyway.

THE DETAILS