Page 51 - Cyber Warnings

The Eruption of Ransomware as a Service

By Marc Saldana

Ransomware has been an ongoing and active threat in the cybercrime landscape since late
2013, and is continuing to grow at a rapid pace. First, ransomware tried to trick victims into
thinking that not paying would bring about legal consequences besides just loss of data. Now,
the authors of ransomware are more transparent, openly saying that the victim has been
hacked.

Ransomware as a Service (RaaS), a variant of ransomware, is a data kidnapping distribution
scheme in which an attacker encrypts a victim’s data. In order to receive a decryption key, the
victim needs to pay a ransom, often through Bitcoin. Sometimes, the data is set to be deleted
after a certain time period to speed up the payment of the ransom.

What makes RaaS so concerning is that Ransomware authors offer on-demand versions
that even the most novice distributor who lacks any kind of technological skillset can
deploy. The distributor simply downloads the malware, infects a computer system and then sets
the ransom.

Ransomware is usually offered to distributors for a minimal price. The reason the cost to the
distributor is so low up front is because the malware author gets their share of any ransom paid.
The average ransom is hundreds of dollars, so both the distributor and the author benefit from
this setup.

With virtually no technical skills, anyone could be a Ransomware distributor, which presents a
big problem for businesses and end users who do not take the proper precautions to protect
themselves and their data.

How to Spot RaaS
RaaS is distributed in several ways. The most common method of distribution is as an
attachment to a phishing email. Clicking on phishing emails is the number one way networks are
infected, data is stolen, and network equipment is damaged. In addition, malicious websites and
advertisements can infect the victim’s computer.

That’s why it is important to train your employees on how to spot RaaS so that they don’t
become victims of an attack.

Cybersecurity training can educate employees about the dangers of clicking on links within
phishing emails, visiting malicious websites, and downloading or installing malicious, non-
approved software that can compromise data and the network.

51 Cyber Warnings E-Magazine – September 2016 Edition
Copyright © Cyber Defense Magazine, All rights reserved worldwide