LockBit 3.0 Accounts For 40% of the Total Ransomware Cases in August 2022 — Security Awareness Missing?

The surge in cyberattacks last month was a clear indication that companies should further improve their security practices. Of course, not all cybercrimes can be stopped at a time, but certain measures could slow them down--even for a bit.

According to the latest report, ransomware threats gradually increased in August. NCC Group's Global Threat Intelligence Team found out that 40% of the incidents came from the LockBit 3.0 ransomware gang.

So far, it's been regarded as the "most threatening ransomware threat" since last month. About 64 incidents are said to have a connection with this cyberattack.

LockBit 3.0 Ransomware is Spreading

The increasing trend in the number of ransomware incidents came after LockBit 2.0 showed up two months ago. At that time, the cybercriminals took it to the extreme when they launched triple extortion methods to their target companies.

According to Dark Reading, the threat started when the developer leaked the builder code for the LockBit 3.0 ransomware. The report says that the involved person unveiled the encryption code of the most recent LockBit Black (or LockBit 3.0). He uploaded it to GitHub.

In a statement by Huntress Labs' security researcher John Hammond, the leaked code could help the white-hat security analysts to understand more about the threat. However, it's a double-edged sword since it could also allow the hackers to create more clone versions of the malware, making it easier for them to spread it across the networks.

"This leak of the builder software commoditizes the ability to configure, customize, and ultimately generate the executables to not only encrypt but decrypt files. Anyone with this utility can start a full-fledged ransomware operation," Hammond added.

The Surge in Ransomware Threats

The rise in cyberattacks is alarming so far. In the 2022 Data Breach Investigations Report that Verizon released, the ransomware incidents this year have skyrocketed to 13%. The company saw that 82% of the attacks have a "human element" involvement.

Since even the security experts could not stop these threats, the researchers thought that they wouldn't go away instantly. By 2023, Acronis projected that the damages from ransomware attacks around the globe would hit over $30 billion.

According to NGG Group's Matt Hull, LockBit 3.0 has been on the lookout to spread more infections since it started to rebrand the operations in June.

On the other hand, another ransomware gang behind BlackBasta was discovered to be linked with the notorious Conti group. It appears that this squad of cybercriminals will follow in the footsteps of the hackers behind LockBit 3.0.

Is it Time to Improve Security Awareness Among Firms?

Often, ransomware targets the most vulnerable organizations in a county. If a company has not enough resources to safeguard its data from the intruders, it would fall off easily

Of course, an organization should have security awareness in addressing these issues. It's important for them to design a framework to mitigate the potential risk during the attack.

It's also noteworthy to consider educating the employees on how to protect their data when the ransomware attack happens, per Venture Beat.

Additionally, conducting a security awareness seminar will help the employees to know the importance of setting up a strong password and determining the phishing links.

It might go a long way for the other organizations to follow this trend, but once it's implemented across the country, it would definitely decrease the damages and exploits that could take place at once.

Meanwhile, Kaspersky warns users to refrain from visiting pirated websites because of the NullMixer malware. This threat is capable of downloading more than 20 trojans and malicious apps simultaneously.

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Joseph Henry