Tech giant Acer has been recently subjected to a ransomware attack with the hackers allegedly demanding a massive ransom of $50 million.
According to reports from sources, the ransomware attack was perpetrated by a hacker group named REvil.
The REvil hacker group has previously made the news rounds for an attack on the foreign currency exchange company, Travelex.
Hacking Acer:
According to security experts, the malicious actors were able to hack into Acer IT network systems by exploiting a Microsoft Exchange vulnerability.
Analytics have contemplated that the hacker group was seemingly able to access data related to financial spreadsheets, bank communications, and bank balances.
While Acer is yet to confirm or address the ransomware attack, the company has commented on the particular situation stating that its IT systems are routinely monitored and most of the cyber attacks are well-tackled.
“Companies like us are constantly under attack, and we have reported recent abnormal situations observed to the relevant law enforcement and data protection authorities in multiple countries,” stated Acer.
Since investigations are still underway, there hasn’t been a whole lot of detailed information given by Acer.
Apparently, the hacker group has threatened Acer that the data they have illegally accessed will be published if the demands are not met by March 28.
It is said the $50 million ransom is so far the highest one demanded to date. Speculations have supplied that the group of hackers has offered a 20% ‘discount’ if the company agrees to meet the ransom demands by Wednesday.
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In return for the ransom, the hackers have claimed to provide Acer with a decryptor, a vulnerability report, and would delete the stolen data and files. During the conversation between Acer representatives and the hacker group, the attackers also warned the company of not replicating the fate of SolarWinds.
Hackers still exploiting Microsoft Exchange vulnerabilities:
A few days ago, it had been reported that the Microsoft Exchange Server vulnerabilities had compromised over 30,000 organizations by alleged state-sponsored Chinese hackers.
In response, Microsoft had rolled out security patches to fix the critical vulnerabilities however the Acer ransomware attack puts forth that hacker groups are still exploiting these vulnerabilities.
