On January 11th and 12th 2023, the British Royal Mail, one of the oldest and most respected postal services in the world, fell victim to a devastating ransomware attack. The attack, which was later determined to have been carried out by a group of cybercriminals operating out of Eastern Europe, has resulted in major disruption of Royal Mail's operations, causing chaos and confusion for millions of customers across the United Kingdom and internationally.
The attack became evident when employees of the Royal Mail logged into their computers and were greeted with a message stating that Royal Mail data had been stolen and encrypted. Having been alerted to the ransomware attack, Royal Mail’s immediate response was to contact the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), who can assess the validity and type of attack.
Typically, ransomware attackers demand a multimillion pound payment in Bitcoin, to be paid within a specific number of hours (e.g. 72 hours), or else they would begin leaking sensitive information and releasing the company's data to the public.
While Royal Mail has reportedly paid cybercriminals’ ransom demands in previous attacks, in order to regain control of their data and systems, and this attack seems to follow a similar model to previous incidents, Royal Mail is not saying if it has paid any ransoms as yet.
The attack had a devastating impact on the Royal Mail's operations, causing delays and disruptions to mail delivery across the UK and internationally.
Ransomware attack could have been avoided
Cybersecurity firm, Blackwired, shared their report into the attack with Orient8.com, highlighting that the ransomware attack could have been avoided. Using detection technologies that observe the genesis of an attack in near real-time, and that can also track key operational components of the attackers’ preparations, Royal Mail (and their cybersecurity partners) could have orchestrated the exact protection of the precise data points required to prevent the attack, days in advance. In other words they would have seen the attack coming and been able to prevent it.
The Royal Mail's attack serves as a stark reminder of the dangers of ransomware and the importance of having proper cyber security measures in place. As technology continues to advance and cyber threats become more sophisticated, it is crucial for businesses and organizations to take proactive steps to protect themselves and their customers from the devastating effects of ransomware attacks.
Orient8 conclusion: The old military adage that ‘time spent in reconnaissance is rarely wasted’, seems particularly apt. Building a protective wall will help keep your systems/data safe is of course necessary, but in today’s world of adaptive technologies and threats, both governments and companies need to know what specific dangers they face, before attacks happen.
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