Search: “ransomware-groups”

Stronger Security Drives Ransomware Groups to Recruit From Within

Researchers report ransomware groups increasingly recruiting insiders at target companies to bypass stronger security, with insider-assisted attacks costing victims millions.

Security researchers have observed an uptick in insider-assisted ransomware attacks as organizations strengthen their defenses. Ransomware groups are reportedly recruiting from within target companies, and malicious insiders also enable other costly threats. No specific victims or campaigns are named in the report.

Dark Reading·Sep 1, 21:03 UTC · 14d agoRansomware

Active Ransomware Groups Surge

The number of active ransomware groups has surged, expanding the threat landscape as more crews run independent extortion operations.

Infosecurity Magazine reports that the count of active ransomware groups has surged according to recent tracking data. More independently operating crews increase the number of extortion operations defenders must monitor. The available information did not name the specific groups contributing to the increase.

Infosecurity Magazine·Aug 19, 00:00 UTC · 28d agoRansomware

Top 10 Best Ransomware Protection Solutions in 2026

A 2026 buyer's guide ranks ten ransomware protection tools by kill-chain role as extortion shifts from encryption to data theft.

The roundup organizes defenses across the ransomware kill chain: prevention-grade EPP/EDR platforms, containment layers, rollback specialists, and immutable recovery. Recommended products include CrowdStrike, Microsoft Defender, Sophos, SentinelOne, Bitdefender, Trend Micro, Halcyon, Huntress, and Malwarebytes. It stresses that many crews now extort on stolen data without encrypting, making exfiltration detection and response speed as important as rollback.

Cyber Security News·Sep 10, 08:18 UTC · 6d agoIndustry1

Medusa ransomware gang has hit over 500 organizations, CISA warns

FBI, CISA, and HHS warn Medusa ransomware has hit over 500 organizations across critical infrastructure since June 2021, using phishing and unpatched flaws.

An updated joint advisory from CISA, FBI, and HHS states Medusa ransomware has affected more than 500 organizations, spanning healthcare, defense, manufacturing, government, IT, financial services, education, insurance, and legal sectors. Since early 2023 Medusa has operated a ransomware-as-a-service affiliate model and buys access from initial access brokers for $100 to $1 million. Affiliates gain entry via phishing and unpatched internet-facing software, exploiting newly disclosed flaws in ScreenConnect, Fortinet EMS, Fortra GoAnywhere, and BeyondTrust within 24 hours. The group runs double extortion, giving victims 48 hours before leak-site publication, with $10,000 in cryptocurrency buying a one-day delay.

Help Net Security·Aug 19, 00:00 UTC · 28d agoRansomware in the wild

Over 500 Critical Infrastructure Organizations Hit by Medusa Ransomware

FBI warns Medusa ransomware-as-a-service has hit over 500 critical infrastructure organizations while significantly improving its tactics, techniques and procedures.

The FBI warned that the Medusa ransomware-as-a-service operation has compromised more than 500 critical infrastructure organizations. The agency said the group has significantly enhanced its tactics, techniques and procedures, making it harder for defenders to counter. Defenders in critical infrastructure sectors should review exposure and harden against Medusa's updated TTPs.

Infosecurity Magazine·Aug 19, 10:50 UTC · 28d agoRansomware in the wild

Local governments in four states dealing with cyberattacks that have shut down services

Ransomware and cyberattacks disrupted local governments in California, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin, taking Suisun City's 911 offline.

Suisun City, California (population 30,000) shut down its IT network after malicious software hit 911 routing, police and fire dispatch; the city declared a state of emergency and the FBI is investigating. Coweta, Oklahoma confirmed a ransomware attack affecting all computers and digital services, with off-site backups slated for restoration. Mitchell (South Dakota), Coryell County (Texas) and Washburn County (Wisconsin) also disclosed cyberattacks that shut down networks and disrupted phone and payment systems.

The Record·Aug 11, 13:14 UTC · Aug 11, 2026Ransomware in the wild

Ransomware group hijacks hospital system’s Facebook page amid ongoing cyberattack fallout

'The Gentlemen' ransomware group hijacked AnMed's Facebook page, claiming theft of 6TB of sensitive patient data during an ongoing cyberattack on the hospital system.

AnMed, a nonprofit medical system with four hospitals in Georgia and South Carolina, is still responding to a July 26 cyberattack involving malware, with 10 facilities remaining closed as of Monday. On Tuesday its Facebook page displayed unauthorized posts claiming 'The Gentlemen' ransomware group exfiltrated 6 terabytes of data, including records on sexual assault, mental health, abortions and harassment; AnMed said the claims are unverified and patient data impact has not been confirmed. The Gentlemen, believed founded by a former Qilin affiliate using the moniker 'hastalamuerte,' extorted 332 victims in the first five months of 2026 per CheckPoint and claimed 125 industrial attacks in Q2 2026 per Dragos. The group typically breaches networks through edge devices, credential brute-forcing and known vulnerabilities, and offers affiliates tools to disable EDR.

The Record·Aug 11, 19:23 UTC · Aug 11, 2026Ransomware in the wild

New pro-Ukraine hacker group targets Russian companies with custom ransomware

F6 links new pro-Ukraine ransomware group VantaCore, likely a Thor rebrand, to seven attacks on Russian firms using custom tooling and multimillion-dollar demands.

Russian cybersecurity firm F6 reports that VantaCore, a ransomware group believed to be a rebrand of pro-Ukrainian group Thor, has targeted at least seven Russian organizations with ransom demands reaching millions of dollars, operating as a ransomware-as-a-service operation with a Tor-based victim chat and a leak site. The group uses custom-built tooling including the VantaCore ransomware that encrypts servers and workstations, VantaCoreLoader for distribution, the VantaCoreRAT backdoor, and SnowKiller, which disables antivirus and security software. Initial access relies on poorly secured VPNs and remote-access tools, flaws in internet-facing applications, and credentials stolen from business partners. F6 notes pro-Ukrainian groups increasingly abandoned stock ransomware like LockBit 3 Black and Babuk in 2025-2026 in favor of custom malware.

The Record·Sep 2, 15:11 UTC · 14d agoRansomware

Ransomware Now Shows Up in Nearly Half of All Breaches: A Survival Playbook for Lean Security Teams

Cyble reports 5,967 ransomware attacks in 2025, up 50%, accounting for nearly half of all tracked breaches.

Cyble's Global Cybersecurity Report 2025 documented 5,967 ransomware attacks, a 50% year-over-year jump. Against 6,046 data breaches and leaks recorded in the same period, ransomware accounted for 49.7% of the combined total. The blog lays out an incident response playbook for lean security teams facing this dominant threat.

Cyble·Aug 10, 12:44 UTC · Aug 10, 2026Ransomware

Weekly Update 517: Cyber Ransoms

Troy Hunt's weekly commentary argues much ransomware is simple extortion by young actors who struggle to monetize ransoms.

In Weekly Update 517, Troy Hunt comments on the current ransomware landscape, noting many attacks involve pure extortion rather than actual malware. He observes that many actors are young and earn large sums but face practical difficulties spending ransom proceeds. The piece is opinion commentary rather than a new incident disclosure.

Troy Hunt·Aug 18, 03:44 UTC · 29d agoIndustry

More than 200 victims of Medusa ransomware identified over the last year, CISA says

CISA and FBI update Medusa ransomware advisory, reporting more than 500 total victims and warning the gang operationalizes newly disclosed exploits within 24 hours.

CISA and the FBI updated their March 2025 advisory, stating Medusa actors had hit more than 500 victims as of April 2026, up from 300 in 2025, with a focus on healthcare and critical infrastructure. The agencies say Medusa rapidly adopts newly announced exploits, sometimes using them up to a week before public vulnerability disclosure, but does not develop its own zero-days, preferring access obtained from unknown sources. The gang moved to an affiliate model in 2023, offers up to $1 million for exclusive initial access brokers, and uses credential stealers plus legitimate remote access tools including AnyDesk, Atera, ConnectWise and Splashtop. No new victims have appeared on its leak site since April, after the shutdown of the University of Mississippi Medical Center drew significant law enforcement attention.

The Record·Aug 18, 18:11 UTC · 29d agoRansomware in the wild1

Record Number Ransomware Victims

A record number of ransomware victims was reported, indicating a marked rise in attack volume against organizations worldwide.

Infosecurity Magazine reports that ransomware victim counts have reached a record high according to newly released figures. The data signals increased attack and extortion volume targeting organizations across sectors. Detailed victim lists and actor attribution were not available in the source information.

Infosecurity Magazine·Aug 19, 00:00 UTC · 28d agoRansomware

Ransomware Threats in the Americas H1 2026: Dissecting the Regional Attack Patterns and Dominant Actors

Cyble's H1 2026 report attributes 2,188 of 3,836 global ransomware attacks (57%) to the Americas, with North America absorbing 1,981 incidents.

Cyble Research and Intelligence Labs tracked 3,836 ransomware incidents worldwide in the first half of 2026, with North and South America combining for 2,188 attacks, more than 57% of the global total. North America alone accounted for 1,981 attacks, driven by a mature multi-group Ransomware-as-a-Service economy competing for market share. The report dissects regional attack patterns and profiles the dominant ransomware actors across the two sub-regions.

Cyble·Aug 14, 14:22 UTC · Aug 14, 2026Research

INC Ransomware Emerges as Dominant Actor Exploiting SonicWall SMA 1000 Flaws

The Hacker News·Aug 3, 16:15 UTC · Aug 3, 2026RansomwareCVE-2026-15409CVE-2026-154101

Ransomware is the Scoreboard

Recorded Future·Aug 4, 00:00 UTC · Aug 4, 2026Ransomware

12 Best Ransomware Protection Solutions Compared (2026): Features & Pricing

GBHackers compares 12 ransomware protection solutions for 2026, recommending layered stacks of EDR prevention, managed detection, containment, and guaranteed recovery.

The editorial comparison argues no single product stops ransomware, recommending a layered strategy across prevention, early detection, blast-radius containment, and clean recovery. CrowdStrike and SentinelOne are named best-in-class EDR, Huntress and Sophos MDR for managed 24/7 coverage, ColorTokens for microsegmentation containment, and Rubrik and Acronis for guaranteed recovery. The guide notes ransomware is now professionalized with double extortion and encryption sprints measured in minutes.

GBHackers·updated 09:52 UTC · 10h ago·first Sep 11, 07:18 UTC · 5d agoIndustry 14 sources1