Occasionally, more than one ransomware team or affiliate may hit the same target. But could three different groups or affiliates have hit Stratford University this year, or is there some other explanation? Stratford University has several accreditation and certification credentials. It also offers several academic programs, with two campuses in Virginia, one in Maryland, and…
Category: U.S.
BianLian hits a community services organization for adults with serious disabilities
Alegria Family Services (AFS) provides residential and community services to adults with developmental disabilities in New Mexico under a contract with the New Mexico Department of Health. They are not a large organization with vast resources, yet BianLian decided they would target them with a ransomware attack. Maybe they saw a ZoomInfo listing showing $7…
PA: Ringgold student data leak revealed
Katherine Mansfield reports: Some student data was leaked via email last week, Ringgold School District announced Monday. “The safety and security of our students is one of our top priorities at Ringgold School District,” Randall Skrinjorich, superintendent, said in a statement. “Upon learning about the accidental release of student data at one of our schools,…
CSA Alert (AA22-249A) #StopRansomware: Vice Society
Note: This joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) is part of an ongoing #StopRansomware effort to publish advisories for network defenders that detail various ransomware variants and ransomware threat actors. These #StopRansomware advisories include recently and historically observed tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) and indicators of compromise (IOCs) to help organizations protect against ransomware. Visit stopransomware.gov to…
URLs Are NOT Passwords, and Sadly, That Needed to Be Said (Stolowitz vs. Nuance Communications)
In 2014, Nuance Communications discovered that anyone could access protected health information on one of its platforms. After the situation persisted for years, a former employee decided to submit a whistleblower complaint to HHS. For his efforts, he spent more than one year fending off threatened federal hacking charges, even though no hacking was involved….
Cyberattack takes down L.A. Unified operations. Schools will open on Tuesday
Updated Sept. 8: Vice Society has claimed responsibility for the attack. As Jeremy Kirk commented, it was somewhat expected given that CISA published an advisory about Vice Society after the attack. Original post: Howard Blume reports: A cyberattack brought down the computer systems of the Los Angeles Unified School District over the weekend, but officials…