GuidePoint Security, a cybersecurity solutions leader enabling organizations to make smarter decisions and minimize risk, announced today the release of GuidePoint Research and Intelligence Team’s (GRIT) Q1 2024 Ransomware Report.
In addition to revealing a nearly 20% year-over-year increase in the number of ransomware victims, the GRIT Q1 2024 Ransomware Report observes major shifts in the behavioral patterns of ransomware groups following law enforcement activity – including the continued targeting of previously “off-limits” organizations and industries, such as emergency hospitals.
“Overall, we’re seeing an increasingly volatile ransomware ecosystem. Law enforcement disruptions this quarter appear to have temporarily slowed or shifted operational activities of prolific Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) groups, including Alphv and LockBit,” said Drew Schmitt, Practice Lead, GRIT. “Affiliates are the lifeblood of RaaS operations, and in the wake of these disruptions, we’ve already observed smaller RaaS groups attempting to recruit disaffected or displaced affiliates. While the long-term effects of law enforcement efforts are yet to be seen, we expect a turbulent Q2 as the RaaS landscape continues to evolve.”
The GRIT Q1 2024 Ransomware Report takes an in-depth look at the shifting RaaS ecosystem, including the residual impact on LockBit from the Operation Cronos Task Force, an international law enforcement effort helmed by the UK National Crime Agency (NCA). Other notable Q1 ransomware events include an apparent exit scam from Alphv following its highly-publicized Change Healthcare ransomware attack, re-extortion attempts from Phobos affiliates and self-proclaimed renewed collaboration from members of the “Five Families” cybercrime collective.
Key Highlights of the Report:
“As the ransomware ecosystem responds to recent events with long standing, highly-impactful groups, we anticipate an upward trend in opportunistic and indiscrete attacks regardless of industry and previous RaaS norms,” Schmitt added. “It’s also likely that some portion of relatively less mature Emerging and Developing groups maintain a steady enough increase in operations to become new long-standing Established groups.”
The GRIT Q1 2024 Ransomware Report is based on data obtained from publicly available resources, including threat groups themselves, as well as threat analyst insights into the ransomware threat landscape.
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About GuidePoint Security
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Nicole Lavella
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