International Criminal Court suffers espionage related cyber attack
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has officially determined that the recent cyberattack on its digital systems, which occurred last month, was an act of espionage with the intent to compromise sensitive court data. Situated in The Hague, the ICC houses a wealth of confidential information, including records of war crimes and details of criminals, making it a valuable target for hackers.
The ICC has publicly announced that it is launching an investigation into the September attack and plans to pursue criminal proceedings against those responsible, tarnishing their international reputation.
Netherlands government officials have suggested that the sophisticated cyberattack might have been orchestrated by individuals from Russia in collaboration with North Korea and China. Nevertheless, preliminary evidence indicates that the initial point of intrusion was traced back to devices connected to the internet in Iran.
Israel hospitals asked to sever ties with internet
In other news, a conflict zone has emerged between Israel and Hamas terrorists. According to a statement from Israel’s Health Ministry, several hospital networks have been advised by the government to disconnect their IT systems from the internet. Hospitals are also being cautioned against potential intranet attacks, as cyber groups associated with Russia, operating through Iran, have been attempting to exploit intranet connections to disseminate malware capable of disrupting network access for days, especially during critical emergencies.
The directive to disconnect health-related systems from the internet was issued jointly by the National Cyber Directorate and the Health Ministry. There are speculations that other government services such as power, water, transit, and arms facilities may also be instructed to shift to intranet services for a temporary period to mitigate the risk of cyber incidents from hostile nations.
Europol seizes Ragnar Locker Ransomware website
Finally, in recent developments, Europol successfully seized the website of the Ragnar Locker ransomware gang toward the end of last week. Government agencies took down the servers that supported the operations of this criminal group in the Netherlands, Germany, and Sweden, effectively disabling their operations. Furthermore, the cryptocurrency funds acquired by this gang through double extortion were also confiscated in the operation.
Ragnar Locker is a notorious cybercriminal gang that launched attacks against 168 international companies on a global scale. It has been active since 2019, with its operational peak in 2020. Notably, during the initial spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the gang displayed some level of humanity by providing decryption keys to healthcare-related organizations that fell victim to their attacks. However, since September 2021, they have been demanding substantial ransoms to compensate for losses incurred during pandemic-induced lockdowns in Western countries.
