ATF confirms cyberattack hit system containing info on its investigation targets
Qilin ransomware group claimed breaching the ATF, exposing data on investigation targets; the agency says a standalone system was hit with no mission impact.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed a cyberattack on a standalone system holding information about targets of ATF investigations, designated a major incident, with no impact on case management, lab, or eForms systems. Qilin, a Russian-speaking affiliate-based ransomware group, claimed responsibility, though ATF declined to confirm involvement or the root cause. Qilin has claimed hundreds of victims across 60+ countries since 2022 and partners with Scattered Spider and Moonstone Sleet.
- ATF says incident limited to a standalone investigation-targets system
- Qilin claimed responsibility shortly before ATF's disclosure
- Qilin among five most-reported ransomware variants to IC3 last year
- Group overlaps with BianLian infrastructure; allies with Scattered Spider
- Threat actors
- QilinScattered SpiderMoonstone SleetBianLian
- Victims
- ATF
- Organizations
- Department of JusticeFBIHalcyonGoogle
- Countries
- United States
From the original article
3 min read at cyberscoop.com
The prolific ransomware group Qilin claimed responsibility for the attack. ATF insists the incident was limited to a standalone system and hasn’t impacted critical operations. The ATF acknowledged the cyberattack earlier this week.
By @CyberScoopNews · cyberscoop.com
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