Security News > 2022 > June > New 'GoodWill' Ransomware Forces Victims to Donate Money and Clothes to the Poor

Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed a new ransomware strain called GoodWill that compels victims into donating for social causes and provide financial assistance to people in need.

"The ransomware group propagates very unusual demands in exchange for the decryption key," researchers from CloudSEK said in a report published last week.

"Once all three activities are completed, the victims should also write a note on social media on 'How you transformed yourself into a kind human being by becoming a victim of a ransomware called GoodWill,'" the researchers said.

There are no known victims of GoodWill and their exact tactics, techniques, and procedures used to facilitate the attacks are unclear as yet.

Further investigation into the ransomware sample has also revealed significant overlaps with another Windows-based strain called HiddenTear, the first ransomware to have been open-sourced as a proof-of-concept back in 2015 by a Turkish programmer.

"GoodWill operators may have gained access to this allowing them to create a new ransomware with necessary modifications," the researchers said.

News URL

https://thehackernews.com/2022/05/new-goodwill-ransomware-forces-victims.html