Priya Patel¡TLDR: Governments around the world are taking action against ransomware operations. This includes the Australian, UK, and US governments imposing sanctions on a Russian national believed to be associated with the REvil ransomware group. Another Russian national linked to the TrickBot malware has been sentenced to prison in the US. In terms of attacks, there have been several high-profile incidents, including an attack on Tietoevry, Veolia North America, and Equilend. The impact of a ransomware attack on loanDepot has also been updated to reveal that the personal data of 16.6 million people was exposed.
Russian nationals linked to ransomware operations have faced legal consequences this week. Aleksandr Gennadievich Ermakov, a member of the REvil ransomware group and believed to be responsible for the 2022 Medibank hack, has been sanctioned by the Australian, UK, and US governments, while Vladimir Dunaev, a developer of the TrickBot malware, has been sentenced to 64 months in prison by the US government. The sanctions and prison sentence are part of governments’ efforts to crack down on ransomware operations.
The impact of ransomware attacks has been significant this week. Tietoevry, a Finnish IT services and cloud hosting provider, experienced an Akira ransomware attack that affected its cloud hosting customers. Veolia North America, a water services giant, was hit by a ransomware attack that disrupted its bill payment systems. Equilend, a global fintech firm, was also targeted by ransomware, with the LockBit ransomware group claiming responsibility.
Further information has emerged about the loanDepot ransomware attack that occurred on January 6th. The mortgage lender revealed that the attack exposed the personal data of 16.6 million people. This highlights the serious impact that ransomware attacks can have on individuals and organizations alike.
