There’s no denying it, public cloud is here to stay and there’s a pretty good chance that your company is running some workloads on Amazon Web Services.

Kroll’s findings for Q1 2023 highlight fragmented threat actor groups and a continued evolution in attack methods and approaches, which, alongside other key shifts in behavior, have concerning implications for organizations in many sectors. In Q1 2023, Kroll observed a 57% increase in the overall targeting of the professional services sector from the end of 2022.

Cyber threats are a growing concern for organizations of all sizes. Data breaches, malware infections, and ransomware attacks can severely disrupt operations, including financial loss, reputational damage, and legal liabilities. As a result, it is essential to proactively monitor your environment and identify malicious activity to detect threats before they can cause significant damage.

Ransomware attacks target organizations or individuals using malware that takes systems or data hostage until a ransom is paid on the promise that a decryption key will then be sent to the organization. There are two main forms of ransomware, non-encrypting ransomware, and crypto ransomware. Non-encrypting, or screen-locking ransomware, locks victims out of their device entirely and is the least common form of ransomware used by cybercriminals.

CISA issues a joint advisory on Russia’s Snake malware operation, hackers use ChatGPT lures to spread malware on Facebook, and a new phishing-as-a-service tool appears in the wild.

Midsize and enterprise organizations take notice: the average and median amount of a ransom payment and the median size of the victim organization are on the rise. If you’re at all concerned about ransomware (and you should be), the latest details from ransomware response vendor Coveware’s latest Quarterly Ransomware Report should have your attention.

New data sheds light on how likely your organization will succumb to a ransomware attack, whether you can recover your data, and what’s inhibiting a proper security posture. You have a solid grasp on what your organization’s cybersecurity stance does and does not include. But is it enough to stop today’s ransomware attacks?

On Tuesday May 9th, 2023, CISA published a Joint Cybersecurity Advisory titled “Hunting Russian Intelligence ‘Snake’ Malware” which provided an in-depth analysis of the Russian Federal Security Services’ (FSB) Snake malware. Arctic Wolf Labs has analyzed the advisory and have summarized the content into key findings and takeaways for the security community.

Akira is a new family of ransomware, first used in cybercrime attacks in March 2023.