Based mostly on a Palo Alto Networks evaluation of victims between mid-2023 to mid-2024 the manufacturing sector was most impacted, adopted by transportation and logistics, wholesale and retail, insurance coverage, pharma, and healthcare.
APT and cybercriminal techniques are often incompatible
The combination of cyberespionage and ransomware actions shouldn’t be extraordinary, however it’s a uncommon prevalence as a result of these operations usually have competing objectives that require totally different approaches. The purpose of cyber espionage is intelligence assortment, so remaining undetected within the sufferer’s community for so long as potential is a precedence. In the meantime, the info encryption a part of ransomware assaults is very seen, instantly giving freely the attacker’s presence.
Nevertheless, there have been instances the place intelligence businesses have contracted, or compelled, non-public hackers to do their bidding in trade for defense from prosecution or different privileges. This has resulted in instances the place some menace teams appeared to interact in each cyberespionage and monetary crimes on the identical time. And though these operations have been saved separate, there was an inevitable overlap of toolsets and techniques.
