Ransomware actors target VoIP service with another wave of DDoS attacks
Ransomware operators are increasingly adding DDoS attacks to their repertoire of extortion mechanisms
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A series of sustained Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) reportedly knocked UK Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) provider VoIP Unlimited offline, weeks after it was targeted in a REvil-orchestratedransomwarecampaign.
According toThe Register, last week’s downtime was the result of “an alarmingly large and sophisticated DDoS attack attached to a colossal ransom demand” which VoIP Unlimited has pinned to theREvil ransomware gang.
The attack is also blamed fordisrupting the operationsof other UK VoIP providers at the same time as well.
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As of 11 December however, VoIP Unlimited has restored a majority of its services, while a couple continue toreport“Degraded Performance.”
From ransomware to DDoS
The Registernotes that while REvil is notorious for its ransomware operations, it seems to have joined the list of ransomware operatives who have begun switching to conducting extortion-based DDoS campaigns.
In fact, it appears before attacking VoIP Unlimited, the gang honed their skills by going aftera Canadian firmin mid-September, and demanding one bitcoin (around $45,000 at the time) to cease the attacks.
Commenting on the change in tactics of ransomware operators,cybersecurityanalysts atTrendMicroobserved that multilevel extortion schemes were beginning to emerge as the latest trend in the ransomware underworld.
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“Triple extortion follows a straightforward formula: adding DDoS attacks to the aforementioned encryption and data exposure threats. These attacks could overwhelm a server or a network with traffic, which in turn could halt and further disrupt operations,”observed TrendMicro.
The new modus operandi was first performed by SunCrypt and RagnarLocker operators in the latter half of 2020, adding that the REvil operators were also looking to adopt this new ransomware strategy.
The emergence of ransomware DDoS (RDDoS) attacks was alsorecently highlightedin a report by US telecoms company Lumen Technologies, as it urged businesses to prepare for this incoming onslaught.
ViaThe Register
With almost two decades of writing and reporting on Linux, Mayank Sharma would like everyone to think he’sTechRadar Pro’sexpert on the topic. Of course, he’s just as interested in other computing topics, particularly cybersecurity, cloud, containers, and coding.
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