Security News > 2022 > February > BlackByte Tackles the SF 49ers & US Critical Infrastructure

The San Francisco 49ers were recently kneecapped by a BlackByte ransomware attack that temporarily discombobulated the NFL team's corporate IT network on the Big Buffalo Wing-Snarfing Day itself: Superbowl Sunday.

Joseph Carson, chief security scientist and advisory CISO at provider of privileged access management solutions provider Delinea, suggested to Threatpost that it's likely that an affiliate hacked the 49ers, as opposed to the authors behind the ransomware, given that BlackByte is an RaaS. BlackByte recently posted some files purportedly stolen from the team on a dark web site in a file marked "2020 Invoices." The gang hasn't made its ransom demands public.

The attack on the 49ers came two days after the FBI and Secret Service jointly announced that BlackByte ransomware has breached the networks of at least three organizations from U.S. critical infrastructure sectors in the last three months.

"As of November 2021, BlackByte ransomware had compromised multiple US and foreign businesses, including entities in at least three US critical infrastructure sectors," the Feds said in a TLP:WHITE joint cybersecurity advisory released on Friday.

Erich Kron, security awareness advocate at KnowBe4, focused on the FBI warning about BlackByte's success in penetrating the critical infrastructure sector: a sector that's been "Plagued" by ransomware attacks, he said.

Kron blamed limited budgets, aging equipment and shortages in cybersecurity staff for making critical infrastructure and many government entities especially vulnerable to ransomware attacks.

News URL

https://threatpost.com/blackbyte-tackles-the-sf-49ers-us-critical-infrastructure/178416/