In the wake of the Ransomware attack on Taiwanese computer manufacturer Acer, a cyber-criminal group has demanded that the company pay a ransom of $50 million in Bitcoin. However, the ransomware group has yet to release any of the encrypted files they stole.
Ransomware attack on Taiwanese computer manufacturer
A Taiwanese computer hardware company has become the latest victim of a ransomware attack. The attack, which took place over the weekend, has affected more than a third of Compal Electronics’ computer systems, according to a report by ZDNet.
Compal has been producing laptops, monitors, tablets, and televisions for major brands. It also licenses brand names of clients. Despite the attack, the company is planning to recover impacted systems from backups.
While the security breach is not expected to expose Compal’s intellectual property, employees have been told to take precautions. For example, the IT staff has been instructed to check their workstations and to back up any important files.
Compal’s Deputy Manager Director Qingxiong Lu, however, denied the company was targeted by a ransomware gang. He said the problem was related to an “abnormality” in the automation system in the office.
Ransomware gang demands $50 million from Acer
Acer, a Taiwanese computer manufacturer, has been hit with a ransomware attack. A cybercrime gang called REvil is demanding $50 million from Acer.
The cybercrime gang has threatened to release the data it has collected if Acer does not pay. REvil is known to post company documents on the dark web.
REvil is also suspected of hacking Travelex. However, REvil has not compromised production systems and has not disrupted business operations.
According to reports, the REvil ransomware gang used a ProxyLogon vulnerability to attack the Microsoft Exchange server of Acer. They accessed the bank communications, bank balances, and financial spreadsheets of the Taiwan-based PC manufacturer.
While the attack only affected the back-office network, the gang has threatened to publish the stolen files on the criminal infested dark web. Some of the data included Acer’s bank communications, financial spreadsheets, and other sensitive information.
Ransomware group has not yet leaked Acer files
Acer, the sixth largest personal computer maker in the world, has been hit by a ransomware attack. Security researchers believe the attackers have been accessing highly sensitive data from the company.
While the company hasn’t acknowledged the attack, a spokesman did say they “routinely monitor” their IT systems. The company reported $3 billion in revenue in Q4 2020.
During the weekend of March 17-19, a ransomware gang attacked Acer. Their malware reportedly infected the PC manufacturer’s Exchange mail server. Initially, the company said it was not affected. But later, the gang threatened to release more sensitive documents if it wasn’t paid. It then demanded $50 million in ransom.
Acer is a large, profitable business with 7,000 employees. Despite the threat, it has yet to make a payment.
JBS paid an $11 million ransom in Bitcoin to REvil
JBS, the world’s largest beef supplier, paid an $11 million ransom in Bitcoin to REvil hackers after an attack shut down its US and Australian systems. The payment was made to prevent further disruption of its meat plants and food supply chains.
According to reports, the Brazilian-based company was notified of the attack on May 30. It contacted the FBI and alerted federal law enforcement officials, who were able to stop the attack.
However, the company is not sure how attackers gained access to its systems. As a result, JBS is conducting forensic analyses of its IT infrastructure. In the meantime, its technology team has suspended production at several of its meat plants.
A spokesperson for the company said that JBS was able to resume production at those plants using backup data. The company did not know how much information was stolen. He also noted that no employee or customer data was compromised.
