Nation-State Cyber-Attack Tools Enter Black Market, With Rise In Ransomware As A Service

Cyber-attacks are on the rise globally, accelerated further after the pandemic forced the world into a remote workforce and a digitized ecosystem. In India, cyber-attacks have doubled in the past three years, according to University of Surrey research, with enterprises the most common target of these attacks. 

Air India experienced a devastating cyber-attack in February, with 4.5 million customers having their data compromised, prompting the enterprise to encourage all of its customers to change their passwords. In January, Indian payment provider Juspay experienced a data breach, with 35 million customers having their data, including card information and fingerprint scans, released on the dark web for anyone to buy. 

India is ranked among the top-3 most frequently attacked company for years, according to our own Cyber Readiness Report 2020/2021. With 1.15 billion phones and 700 million internet users, India exposes a vulnerable and large user base and plenty of surfaces for cyber-attacks to take off.

Unsplash/Representational image

One of the most well-known cyber-attacks was the WannaCry attack, a worldwide ransomware cyber-attack occurring in May 2017 using the WannaCry cryptoworm. This attack targeted computers running Microsoft Windows, encrypting data and extorting money out of victims with ransom threats. This attack used the EternalBlue exploit to gain access, an exploit developed by the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and leaked by a hacker group called the Shadow Brokers, a name referencing a character in the video game series Mass Effect. The SolarWinds supply chain attack from May was also launched by nation-state attackers, with threat actors accessing Orion users’ networks with a trojan hiding in software updates.

So, why should businesses care about ransomware attacks, especially when most attacks seem to be against public sectors? Simply because, while the attacks on public sector get vast coverage and close attention, truth is, there are many more attacks on SMEs – successful ones at that, but those are simply not as visible, so they’re not making the news. Research shows: small businesses are a ripe target for attackers – with 71% of ransomware…