[BreachExchange] Ransomware Gang Leaks Files Allegedly Stolen From Accenture

[Sophia Kingsbury]

https://www.securityweek.com/ransomware-gang-leaks-files-allegedly-stolen-accenture

Consulting giant Accenture on Wednesday confirmed being targeted by
hackers. The confirmation came just hours before a ransomware gang started
leaking files allegedly stolen from the company.

The incident came to light when LockBit ransomware operators claimed on
their website that they had breached Accenture’s systems. A counter
displayed on the site showed that stolen files would be made public within
hours, unless Accenture paid up.

“Through our security controls and protocols, we identified irregular
activity in one of our environments. We immediately contained the matter
and isolated the affected servers. We fully restored our affected systems
from back up. There was no impact on Accenture’s operations, or on our
clients’ systems,” Accenture stated.

LockBit ransomware operators encrypt files on compromised systems, but
before doing so, they typically spend days or weeks on the victim’s network
to harvest potentially valuable information that they can use to extort the
target and increase their chances of getting paid.

When the time ran out on their website, the hackers made public more than
2,000 files allegedly stolen from Accenture. The company has yet to make
any comments on the files being leaked, but people who have analyzed the
exposed files said they do not appear to store customer information.

On the other hand, more files could be made public soon. Cyber risk
intelligence company Cyble said the cybercriminals claimed to have obtained
more than 6 Tb of files and they demanded a $50 million ransom from
Accenture.

The hackers suggested on their website and elsewhere that they were helped
by an insider, specifically someone who is still employed by the company.
Cyble said LockBit operators had been looking to hire corporate employees
that would help them gain access to their targets’ networks.

The LockBit ransomware has been around since 2019, with version 2.0 being
launched earlier this summer. The malware has been used in attacks aimed at
thousands of organizations. Australia’s Cyber Security Centre reported
earlier this month that LockBit operators had been exploiting an old
vulnerability affecting internet-exposed Fortinet devices for initial
access.

Felipe Duarte, security researcher at secure access firm Appgate, told
SecurityWeek that the recently introduced LockBit 2.0 implemented several
new features that made it even more dangerous.

“Among the advertised capabilities is a new dangerous feature to encrypt
entire Windows domains through group policies. After infecting a domain
controller, the malware creates new group policies and pushes them to every
device connected on the network. Those policies disable antivirus
protections and execute the ransomware. Additionally, LockBit seems to have
copied a feature from Egregor ransomware, that after a successful
infection, it sends to all connected printers a command to repeatedly print
the ransom note,” Duarte said.

“LockBit's new version also added a new strategy to acquire ‘affiliates’,”
the researcher added. “After encrypting a device, LockBit sets the
wallpaper to a ransom note, claiming responsibility for the attack and
pointing to the more detailed ransom note .txt file. Now the set wallpaper
also contains a recruitment ad, promising millions of dollars to employees
that provides them access to the company systems so they can launch a
ransomware attack. According to the ad, the access can be a valid
credential or even executing a threat attached in an e-mail.”
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