Manufacturing Sees Rising Ransomware Threat

Crypto-ransomware groups are increasingly adopting malware and tools that can probe and attack operational technology, such as industrial control systems, according to an assessment of current threats.

Ransomware groups are increasingly adopting techniques that could be used to hurt the operations of manufacturing companies, such as incorporating code that looks for and exploits industrial control systems (ICSes) and can spread from IT networks to OT networks, according to ICS security firm Dragos.

In a report released today, the company points to multiple codebases — including EKANS, Megacortex, and Clop — that now include code for stopping processes in ICSes, and pointed to multiple public ransomware incidents that shut down manufacturing firms. In March 2020, for example, a strain of the Ryuk ransomware hit steel maker EVRAZ, shutting down production and leading to the…