- New fog -ransomware asks victims to justify their jobs
- Fog has been responsible for 173 attacks since June 2024
- The payload is originally delivered via E -Mail/Phishing
A new ransomware attack seems to channel Elon Musk’s energy by demanding that workers share an overview of their weekly results, just as Tesla CEO has demanded as part of his DODE effort.
The note refers to Musk’s controversial ‘Five Bullet Points’ memo and asks victims to justify their jobs or coughing $ 1 trillion.
The original musk policy was issued under Trump’s administration and intended to create accountability in federal departments. It quickly stood against setbacks and later became optional, but it now burns the latest scam area according to a new trend microport.
Fog ransomware inspired by Musk’s push for accountability
Trendmicro found nine ransomware samples between March 27 and April 2, as it has attributed to fog ransomware.
They “dropped a note containing key names related to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE),” said the report, which highlights Doges’ position in the headlines.
The report is quoting recently Pakinomist Reporting of revealing a Doge technologist had previously been involved in supporting a cyber crime band linked to trade in stolen data and cyber stalking of an FBI agent.
Fog ransomware is tied to 173 counts of ransomware activity since June 2024 and 53 in February 2025 alone. Individuals and organizations from technology, education, manufacturing and transport sectors are mostly at risk.
In the event of the current DODE-INSPIRED attack, malware is provided via email or a phishing attempt using a ZIP file named ‘Pay Justment’ containing a LNK file disguised as a PDF. Click the file runs a PowerShell script that downloads Ransomware -Nyt loads and plays political YouTube videos.
Although there are basic cyber security hygiene steps that users can take to prevent attacks, such as not clicking on suspicious links, Social Engineering remains with the most utilized attack vector and humans being the weakest point in any company’s cybersecurity strategy, which is why Trend Micro also recommends companies to monitor indicators for compromise.
