Security News
The Monti ransomware gang has returned, after a two-month break from publishing victims on their data leak site, using a new Linux locker to target VMware ESXi servers, legal, and government organizations. Researchers at Trend Micro analyzing the new encryption tool from Monti found that it has "Significant deviations from its other Linux-based predecessors."
Ransomware gangs continue to prioritize targeting VMware ESXi servers, with almost every active ransomware gang creating custom Linux encryptors for this purpose. Hospitals run by Prospect Medical Holdings were also impacted this week by a ransomware attack on the parent company.
The Abyss Locker operation is the latest to develop a Linux encryptor to target VMware's ESXi virtual machines platform in attacks on the enterprise. With VMware ESXi being one of the most popular virtual machine platforms, almost every ransomware gang has begun to release Linux encryptors to encrypt all virtual servers on a device.
The Akira ransomware operation uses a Linux encryptor to encrypt VMware ESXi virtual machines in double-extortion attacks against companies worldwide. BleepingComputer's analysis of the Linux encryptor shows it has a project name of 'Esxi Build Esxi6,' indicating the threat actors designed it specifically to target VMware ESXi servers.
VMware patched today a VMware ESXi zero-day vulnerability exploited by a Chinese-sponsored hacking group to backdoor Windows and Linux virtual machines and steal data.The cyber espionage group-tracked as UNC3886 by cybersecurity firm Mandiant who discovered the attacks-abused the CVE-2023-20867 VMware Tools authentication bypass flaw to deploy VirtualPita and VirtualPie backdoors on guest VMs from compromised ESXi hosts where they escalated privileges to root.
A new ransomware-as-service operation called MichaelKors has become the latest file-encrypting malware to target Linux and VMware ESXi systems as of April 2023. "In fact, VMware goes as far as to claim it's not required. This, combined with the popularity of ESXi as a widespread and popular virtualization and management system, makes the hypervisor a highly attractive target for modern adversaries."
An increasing number of ransomware operations are adopting the leaked Babuk ransomware source code to create Linux encryptors targeting VMware ESXi servers. "There is a noticeable trend that actors increasingly use the Babuk builder to develop ESXi and Linux ransomware," said SentinelLabs threat researcher Alex Delamotte.
Multiple threat actors have capitalized on the leak of Babuk ransomware code in September 2021 to build as many as nine different ransomware families capable of targeting VMware ESXi systems. "These variants emerged through H2 2022 and H1 2023, which shows an increasing trend of Babuk source code adoption," SentinelOne security researcher Alex Delamotte said in a report shared with The Hacker News.
RTM Locker is the latest enterprise-targeting ransomware operation found to be deploying a Linux encryptor that targets virtual machines on VMware ESXi servers.At the time, Trellix and MalwareHunterTeam had only seen a Windows ransomware encryptor, but as Uptycs reported yesterday, RTM has expanded its targeting to Linux and VMware ESXi servers.
The threat actors behind RTM Locker have developed a ransomware strain that's capable of targeting Linux machines, marking the group's first foray into the open source operating system. "Its locker ransomware infects Linux, NAS, and ESXi hosts and appears to be inspired by Babuk ransomware's leaked source code," Uptycs said in a new report published Wednesday.