Security News > 2023 > September > Threat Actors Targeting Microsoft SQL Servers to Deploy FreeWorld Ransomware

Threat actors are exploiting poorly secured Microsoft SQL servers to deliver Cobalt Strike and a ransomware strain called FreeWorld.

"The ransomware payload of choice appears to be a newer variant of Mimic ransomware called FreeWorld."

Rhysida is one of the nascent ransomware strains that emerged in May 2023, adopting the increasingly popular tactic of encrypting and exfiltrating sensitive data from organizations and threatening to leak the information if the victims refuse to pay.

"Key Group ransomware uses a base64 encoded static key N0dQM0I1JCM= to encrypt victims' data," Dutch cybersecurity company EclecticIQ said in a report released Thursday.

2023 has witnessed a record surge in ransomware attacks following a lull in 2022, even as the percentage of incidents that resulted in the victim paying have fallen to a record low of 34%, according to statistics shared by Coveware in July 2023.

The fluctuations in monetization rates have been accompanied by ransomware threat actors continuing to evolve their extortion tradecraft, including sharing details of its attack techniques to show why its victims aren't eligible for a cyber insurance payout.

News URL

https://thehackernews.com/2023/09/threat-actors-targeting-microsoft-sql.html