Category Archives: Commentaries and Analyses

Two ransomware attacks in 2023 first disclosed in April — Kisco Senior Living, Blackstone Valley Community Health Care

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Two more ransomware incidents that occurred in 2023 were disclosed this week. One was disclosed 10 months after the incident, and the other was disclosed 5 months after the incident. Kisco Senior Living On or about June 15, 2023, BlackByte claimed resp… Continue reading Two ransomware attacks in 2023 first disclosed in April — Kisco Senior Living, Blackstone Valley Community Health Care→

NIS2 implementation enters the final stretch – six months to deadline

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Mark Young, Paul Maynard, and Aleksander Aleksiev of Covington and Burling write: In six months’ time, on 17 October 2024, Member State laws that transpose the EU’s revised Network and Information Systems Directive (“NIS2”) will start to apply.  As des… Continue reading NIS2 implementation enters the final stretch – six months to deadline→

Cybersecurity firm suspects Russia-linked hacking group behind cyberattack on Texas water facility

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Tom Olson reports: A hacking group with ties to the Russian government is suspected of carrying out a cyberattack in January that caused a tank at a Texas water facility to overflow, experts from US cybersecurity firm Mandiant said Wednesday. The attac… Continue reading Cybersecurity firm suspects Russia-linked hacking group behind cyberattack on Texas water facility→

Data allegedly from Change Healthcare ransomware attack raises more questions than answers (1)

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UPDATE:  Sometime earlier today, after my communication with RansomHub, they removed the April 15 update described in the post from their listing. It has now been replaced with a note: Change HealthCare – OPTUM Group – United HealthCare Gro… Continue reading Data allegedly from Change Healthcare ransomware attack raises more questions than answers (1)→

Minneapolis therapy clinic sues over cyberattack at UnitedHealth subsidiary

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Christopher Snowbeck reports on how the Change Healthcare attack has affected one clinic in Minnesota. His report provides a good illustration of the issues raised by a recent AMA survey of some physicians, reported here previously. From his reporting:… Continue reading Minneapolis therapy clinic sues over cyberattack at UnitedHealth subsidiary→

Threat actors walked away from a $1.8 million offer because the victim talked to the media?!

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A recent listing on LockBit’s leak site about Crinetics Pharmaceuticals seemed unusual. It included a disclaimer: “Those responsible for the exfiltration of data belonging to this victim have no association, indirect or direct, with the Loc… Continue reading Threat actors walked away from a $1.8 million offer because the victim talked to the media?!→

Cyber Safety Review Board Releases Report on Microsoft Online Exchange Incident from Summer 2023

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CSRB’s Third Review Focuses on Actions Microsoft, Other Cloud Providers, and the U.S. Government Should Take to Protect Cloud Customers WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the Cyber Safety Review Board’s (CSRB) f… Continue reading Cyber Safety Review Board Releases Report on Microsoft Online Exchange Incident from Summer 2023→

Cybercriminals Abused Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) in 90% of Attacks Handled by Sophos Incident Response in 2023

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Some more analysis of 2023 breaches. Sophos reports that for more than 150 incident response (IR) cases it handled in 2023, cybercriminals abused remote desktop protocol (RDP) in 90% of attacks. This was the highest incidence of RDP abuse since Sophos … Continue reading Cybercriminals Abused Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) in 90% of Attacks Handled by Sophos Incident Response in 2023→

Grassley, Wyden Probe Data Breach that Exposed 1.5 Million Organ Transplant Patients’ Sensitive Data

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AJ Taylor reports: Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) are holding the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) accountable after a data breach allowed UNOS system users unauthorized access to over a million sensitive patient records. T… Continue reading Grassley, Wyden Probe Data Breach that Exposed 1.5 Million Organ Transplant Patients’ Sensitive Data→