Arete has published its 2023 Annual Crimeware Report, which highlights significant changes and important developments in the world of cyber threats. Using information gathered from Arete incident response engagements, the research investigates the emergence and decline of ransomware variations, patterns in ransom demands and payments, effects on vital infrastructure, and predictions made by Arete for the year 2024.
Key findings within the report:
- Threat actors, according to Arete, are always improving their methods to become more nimble, affluent, and fast. These adjustments included new ways to get around security measures as well as new ways to obtain and distribute stolen data.
- In 2023, just 31.3% of engagements resulted in a ransom being paid; as a result, threat actors adopted more assertive negotiating strategies and demanded noticeably higher ransom amounts.
- Law enforcement put more pressure on threat actors after successfully stopping the Hive ransomware campaign and temporarily taking down ALPHV/BlackCat.
The study contrasts the difficulties and effects of RaaS operations and closed groups while providing analysis and insights on the top ten ransomware variations that have been seen. It also looks at the effects of encryption, negotiating strategies, and changes in ransom demands and payments. The research also looks at the difficulties that threat actors confront, such as insider threats, affiliate betrayal, and the heightened efforts by law enforcement to combat cybercrime.
“As the threat landscape continues to evolve and adapt, so should the defences and controls protecting organizations around the world,” said Arete’s Senior VP for Government Relations and Operational Intelligence Sharing, David Lacquement, Major General U.S. Army (Ret). “Arete is committed to providing our clients and partners with actionable data to transform their response to cyber risk,” Lacquement added.
