ShrinkLocker: Turning BitLocker into ransomware


The original purpose of BitLocker is to address the risks of data theft or exposure from lost, stolen, or improperly decommissioned devices.

Nonetheless, threat actors have found out that this mechanism can be repurposed for malicious ends to great effect. In that incident, the attackers were able to deploy and run an advanced VBS script that took advantage of BitLocker for unauthorized file encryption. We spotted this script and its modified versions in Mexico, Indonesia, and Jordan. In the sections below, we analyze in detail the malicious code obtained during our incident response effort and provide tips for mitigating this kind of threat.

Read more…
Source: Kaspersky


Sign up for our Newsletter


Related:

  • Cyber Firm at Center of Russian Hacking Charges Misread Data

    March 21, 2017

    An influential British think tank and Ukraine’s military are disputing a report that the U.S. cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike has used to buttress its claims of Russian hacking in the presidential election. The CrowdStrike report, released in December, asserted that Russians hacked into a Ukrainian artillery app, resulting in heavy losses of howitzers in Ukraine’s war with ...

  • Personalized spam campaign targets Germany

    March 20, 2017

    A spam campaign Symantec observed in January 2017 targeting people who live in Germany appears to be, once again, using detailed, real personal information to enhance the believability of the messages. Victims who open the message attachments are likely to have their Windows computers infected with malware that steals banking information. First seen in the UK Symantec ...

  • Cybercriminals getting as good as nation state spies – report

    March 14, 2017

    The European energy sector is being targeted by advanced threat actors seeking proprietary information to advance the capabilities of domestic companies, according to FireEye Mandiant. The latest annual report by FireEye’s incident response arm further warns that cyber threat groups are also targeting European industrial control systems for potentially disruptive or destructive operations. The capability of cybercriminals ...

  • Fighting cyber crimes in offshore oil and gas industry

    March 1, 2017

    Cyber crime costs offshore oil and gas companies millions each year in lost business and damaged equipment, a cyber attack on critical infrastructure, such as an oil rig, can result in more than just lost revenue but it can be catastrophic for the environment and have far reaching impacts. However, cyber security on actual installations is ...

  • New Global Cybersecurity Report Reveals Misaligned Incentives, Executive Overconfidence Create Advantages for Attacker

    March 1, 2017

    Intel Security, in partnership with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), today released “Tilting the Playing Field: How Misaligned Incentives Work Against Cybersecurity,” a global report and survey revealing three categories of misaligned incentives: corporate structures versus the free flow of criminal enterprises; strategy versus implementation; and senior executives versus those in implementation ...

  • Even bakeries get hit by hackers, top insurer warns ‘ill-equipped’ small businesses

    February 27, 2017

    Bakers are not immune from the hacking epidemic spreading across Europe, a top insurer has warned. Hiscox boss Bronek Masojada said small businesses faced just as much risk as large ones from cyber crime – but many did not have the resources to combat it. He said that in one case, a German bakery was targeted by ...