Banco de Brasília (BRB) was the victim of a ransomware attack earlier this week. According to information from Tecmundo, a group of hackers invaded the bank’s systems and stole data from several users. Then the group demanded 50 Bitcoin (BTC) not to leak the data. Based on the current price of BTC, the value corresponds to around BRL 5.2 million. One of the hackers, using the pseudonym “Crydat”, contacted BRB to inform them that the bank would have to pay the amount before 3 pm on October 6th. BRB has not officially commented on the hackers’ requests, and has not confirmed whether or not it paid the ransom. The case is currently being investigated by the Federal Police’s Special Office for Combating Cybercrime.
Hackers used famous program to attack
According to anonymous sources interviewed by Tecmundo, the hackers used a ransomware called LockBit, created by a group that has the same name. The software gained fame in 2021 when Lockbit affected 350 organizations worldwide. The group has been operating since 2019, but has gained repercussion in the last two years. As a result of its growth, ransomware has accounted for 40% of all ransomware attacks since last year. On Wednesday night (05), BRB posted the following statement to its customers: “BRB informs its customers that it is intermittently in the systems. The technology teams are working to get things back to normal as quickly as possible.” Since then until the closing of this matter, the bank has not provided new information about the case, which remains under investigation by the Federal Police. The group recently updated their LockBit ransomware to version 3.0 and they offer a rewards program for anyone who finds flaws and proposes improvements. Prizes can reach US$ 1 million, or R$ 5.2 million in current values. The group primarily uses privacy-focused cryptocurrencies such as Zcash (ZEC). This group has carried out several attacks in Mexico, Venezuela, Peru, Panama and Argentina, where it recently stole 140GB of information about patients, physicians and affiliates. In order not to release the data, the group demanded the payment of $300,000 in cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrency crimes increase in Brazil
Brazil is one of the Latin American countries with the most cryptocurrency scams, to the point that Brazilian justice had to work with the FBI and CIA to strengthen its special forces and improve its tracking techniques. According to data published by the analysis platform SonicWall, Brazil has become one of the preferred destinations for ransomware groups. In 2021, hackers managed to steal over $33 million worth of BTC and other cryptocurrencies. In short, Brazil is the fourth country in the world with the most ransomware attacks, second only to the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States.
Number of ransomware thefts by country. Source: SonicWall. In another survey conducted by cybersecurity firm Kaspersky, 56% of Brazilian companies suffered a ransomware attack. However, 80% of that total said they are not willing to pay any ransom.
