- Acer becomes the target of a massive ransomware attack.
- Hackers ask $50 million to release the company’s stolen data.
- Bleeping Computer tells about the attack that has been carried by the REvil hacker group.
- Hackers have reportedly given Acer until March 28 to pay the ransom amount.
Acer has purportedly become the victim of a massive ransomware attack. The hackers are asking for $50 million to release the company’s stolen data. Bleeping Computer reported the attack on Friday. Nonetheless, the company has not publicly confirmed the attack. It vaguely stated that companies like us are constantly under attack. According to Bleeping Computer, the attack was carried out by the REvil hacker group, which announced on its data leak site that it had breached Acer. The group shared images of the alleged files they had stolen as proof. It includes financial spreadsheets, bank balances, and bank communications. If true, this would be the largest attempted ransom ever demanded. The highest attempted ransom to date was $30 million.
REvil hacker group attacks Acer and gets into their data and asks for ransom ware
REvil allegedly launched a ransomware attack on the hardware vendor Acer. It is demanding US$50 million to decrypt the locked data. According to Bleeping Computer, Acer has until 28 March to pay the ransom, at which date the price will then double to US$100 million. The attack possibly came from an exploit of Microsoft Exchange, as cybersecurity firm Advanced Intelligence’s CEO Vitali Kremez allegedly told the attacker group supposedly targeted a Microsoft Exchange server on an Acer domain. Additionally, the attacker group allegedly communicated with an Acer representative on 14 March, promising to delete the stolen files, as well as providing a decryptor and a vulnerability report.
Acer talks about cybersecurity practices and ransomware attacks.
Acer added that it urged companies and organizations to adhere to cybersecurity best practices. To be vigilant to any network activity abnormalities. As per reports that it, as well as the French outlet LeMagIT, discovered the ransomware sample REvil used in the Acer attack. The outlet also analyzed the ransom note and the victim’s conversation with the hackers, which Bleeping Computer has confirmed the attack was on Acer.
Some experts told that the breach could be related to a Microsoft Exchange server on Acer’s domain. It’s not clear whether the hackers exploited the Microsoft Exchange security vulnerabilities revealed earlier this month, which early estimates state have compromised around 30,000 U.S. organizations. In response to the Exchange exploits, Microsoft has released various patches and scripts to mitigate against the vulnerabilities
