Police advising that ransoming businesses has become a successful business for cybercriminals

Release Date: January 12, 2024

On Christmas Eve, cybercriminals targeted three hospitals in Germany using Lockbit 3.0 ransomware. Ransomware is a type of malicious software that infects computers and networks. It holds data and other sensitive information “hostage” in exchange for payment. If you refuse to meet their payment demands, the cybercriminals could destroy the files. Or they could make them available to the public, resulting in data theft and leaks of sensitive information.

Ransomware as a Service (RaaS), such as Lockbit 3.0, has become a successful business model for cybercriminals. It is often marketed to scammers who are looking to use ransomware to target specific businesses or organizations. Far from being an amateur operation, RaaS groups operate like legitimate businesses. They have professional websites, customer service teams, and even supporting documentation. All are designed with one purpose – to help scammers steal data!

Your business or organization relies on you to help keep their data safe!

Follow these tips to avoid falling victim to a ransomware attack:

• Always be mindful of a sense of urgency in emails. Never click on links or attachments without first verifying their legitimacy.
• Trust your instincts! If something seems suspicious, always check with your organization’s security team before clicking.
• Ransomware can strike at any business or organization, even highly respected ones like hospitals! Just this past week even the Toronto Zoo experienced a similar cybersecurity ransomware attack! As a user, it’s important to remain alert and continuously vigilant.

Stop, look, and think. Don’t be fooled by the scammers.