- S-RM sketches how a company was targeted by Akira Ransomware Gang
- It was protected by an EDR solution but had an unprotected webcam
- Webcam enabled Akira to implement a Linux-based encrypter
Criminals from the Akira Ransomware group have been found using an unsecured webcam to launch their attacks and encrypt their target’s entire network.
This is according to cybersecurity scientists S-RM, who found that threat actors first gained access to their target’s remote access solution, either by briding-tinging login credentials or buying them from the black market. From there, they installed the attitude to turn to other devices on the network, establish persistence and steal sensitive data.
Then they tried to implement the encryption of Windows, but were stopped by the company’s endpoint detection and response (EDR) mechanism. After hit this roadblock, Akira looked at other devices outside EDR’s waking eye and found a live webcam vulnerable to external Shell access.
Avoidable incident
Webcam ran on another operating system based on Linux, enabling Akira to use its Linux encryption. Talking to Bleeping computerS-RM said Akira used webcam for Mount Windows Server Message Block (SMB) network shares in the company’s other devices. Then they encrypted the network spirit over SMB and successfully worked around EDR.
“When the device was not monitored, the victim organization’s security team was not aware of the increase in malicious server message block traffic from webcam to the affected server, which may otherwise have warned them,” S-RM said.
To make things worse, S-RM confirmed that a webcam solution was available, which means the entire attack could have been avoided with timely patching.
Other details were not revealed, so we do not know who the victims were or what type of files Akira stole in this attack. We also do not know if the company paid any ransom or whether the stolen files came to the dark web.
Alongside the notorious Lockbit, Akira remains one of the larger ransomware threats out there, so users need to be on their guard.
