Security News > 2021 > August > LockFile ransomware uses PetitPotam attack to hijack Windows domains
At least one ransomware threat actor has started to leverage the recently discovered PetitPotam NTLM relay attack method to take over the Windows domain on various networks worldwide.
Behind the attacks appears to be a new ransomware gang called LockFile that was first seen in July, which shows some resemblance and references to other groups in the business.
LockFile threat actor seems to rely on publicly available code to exploit the original PetitPotam variant.
Symantec notes in a blog post today that the ransom note from LockFile ransomware is very similar to the one used by the LockBit ransomware group.
If we were to speculate about the choice for the email's domain, we could say that LockFile looks like the project of the disgruntled Conti affiliate that leaked the gang's attack playbook.
The final step is to copy the LockFile ransomware payload on the local domain controller and push it across the network with the help of a script and executables that run on client hosts immediately after authentication to the server.
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