Primarily based 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 normally incompatible
The combination of cyberespionage and ransomware actions will not be exceptional, however it’s a uncommon incidence as a result of these operations usually have competing objectives that require totally different approaches. The aim of cyber espionage is intelligence assortment, so remaining undetected within the sufferer’s community for so long as doable is a precedence. In the meantime, the info encryption a part of ransomware assaults is extremely seen, instantly giving freely the attacker’s presence.
Nevertheless, there have been instances the place intelligence companies have contracted, or compelled, non-public hackers to do their bidding in change for cover from prosecution or different privileges. This has resulted in instances the place some risk teams appeared to have interaction in each cyberespionage and monetary crimes on the identical time. And regardless that these operations had been stored separate, there was an inevitable overlap of toolsets and techniques.
