US Treasury says financial ransomware losses topped $1.2 billion last year
November 4, 2022 – Published on SC Magazine
US financial institutions processed roughly $1.2 billion in ransomware-related payments last year, a nearly 200 percent increase compared to 2020, according to the Treasury Department.
The sharp increase in cost underscores the damage of ransomware on the private sector. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) noted that its analysis indicates that “ransomware continues to pose a significant threat to US critical infrastructure sectors, businesses, and the public.”
Such incidents skyrocketed in the second half of 2021, with 75% of activities related to Russian cybercriminals, according to the report. FinCEN said four out of five top ransomware variants during the period are connected to Russia, though they cannot attribute it directly to Moscow.
While the public and private sectors have made concrete efforts to address elevating threats, ransomware tactics have evolved accordingly.
More ransomware groups are shifting to double extortion attacks, stealing data and exfiltrating them before the encryption, according to Drew Schmitt, ransomware negotiator and principal threat intelligence analyst at GuidePoint Security.
“In some cases, to put more pressure on victims to pay the ransom, threat actors even threaten organizations that they will send leaked data to organizations’ competitors,” Schmitt told SC Media in an interview.
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