Sophisticated ransomware attacks are rising across globe and could have ‘devastating consequences’, experts warn

CYBERSECURITY experts across the globe are warning of a “growing wave” of ransomware attacks, a new report says.

Intelligence officers from the US, UK, and Australia have issued a joint cybersecurity advisory detailing the rising threat posed by ransomware.

Malicious ransomware attacks are on the rise around the world.

The advisory titled “2021 Trends Show Increased Globalized Threat of Ransomware” was released on Wednesday by members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), National Security Agency (NSA), Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC), and the United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC-UK).

“In 2021, cybersecurity authorities in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom observed an increase in sophisticated, high-impact ransomware incidents against critical infrastructure organizations globally,” the report stated.

The document then went on to outline a list of the types of cybersecurity threats the three nations are facing, including an increase in brute force attacks via stolen Remote Desktop Protocols (RDP) credentials or exploitation of software vulnerabilities; money extortion via phishing scams; and continuously increasing professional ransomware services-for-hire, among others.

The companies most frequently targeted across all three nations include those classified as “big game” — defined by CISA as “high-value organizations and/or those that provide critical services.”

Some of the victims include Colonial Pipeline Company, JBS Foods, and Kaseya Limited, though many smaller companies have been targeted as well.

The report went on, advising that if cybersecurity criminals continue to “yield financial returns,” the cyberthreats and attacks will become more widespread.

Lindy Cameron, the chief executive of the UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), warned that ransomware was “a rising global threat with potentially devastating consequences”.

“We live at a time when every government, every business, every person must focus on the threat of ransomware and take action to mitigate the risk of becoming a victim,” CISA Director Jen Easterly added, emphasizing the sentiment.

Easterly also implored all organizations to review the advisory, as well as to visit ‘stopransomware.gov’ to better position themselves against cybersecurity threats.

CISA suggested other “immediate actions” that organizations can take, including updating their operating software security, implementing a user training program that can help employees identify malicious emails; securing remote desktop protocol; and having data backed up in offline storage.

“It is critical for business leaders across industries and the public to take action immediately to harden their systems and work with law enforcement to tackle this threat,” Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division advised.

There are a number of actions organizations can take immediately to mitigate their risk of getting hacked.

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