BeneCare Dental Insurance Under Siege: Inside the Hunters Ransomware Assault
Incident Date:
April 3, 2024
Overview
Title
BeneCare Dental Insurance Under Siege: Inside the Hunters Ransomware Assault
Victim
BeneCare Dental Insurance
Attacker
Hunters International
Location
First Reported
April 3, 2024
BeneCare Dental Insurance Targeted by Hunters Ransomware Group
Overview
BeneCare Dental Insurance, a company operating in the Healthcare Services sector since 1979, has been targeted by the Hunters ransomware group.
Company Profile
The company has a unique partnership model between dental professionals and a specialty administrator to underwrite group dental plans. BeneCare Dental Insurance is known for its group dental plans, offering lower administrative overhead, stable rates year-over-year, and more dollars allocated to patient care. While the exact size of the company is not explicitly stated, BeneCare is recognized as the largest dental insurer in the country for government-sponsored plans covering children and seniors.
Previous Attacks
The vulnerabilities that made BeneCare a target for the Hunters ransomware group are not specified. However, the LockBit ransomware group, known for its attacks, was responsible for a similar attack on Managed Care of North America (MCNA) in 2023. The LockBit group has targeted well-known companies like SpaceX and was linked to a Russian-Canadian citizen arrested in Ontario, Canada.
FBI Recommendations
The FBI advises against paying ransom in response to a ransomware attack. Paying ransom encourages perpetrators to target more victims and incentivizes others to get involved. Instead, the FBI recommends securing lost data and future security by addressing root causes of ransomware attacks, such as social engineering tactics like phishing, unpatched software, poor authentication, and the lack of multi-factor authentication.
Sources
- BeneCare Dental Insurance - Learn About Our Group Dental Plans
- HackManac on Twitter: "#CyberAttack Alert ⚠️ #USA: BeneCare Dental Plans reportedly compromised by the Hunters International ransomware group. The attack allegedly led to the ..."
- Fierce Healthcare: Attack by notorious ransomware group compromises personal data of 8.9M dental insurance members
- ThreatMon Advanced Ransomware Monitoring on Twitter: "Actor : hunters Victim : BeneCare ..."
- Cyber Rescue Alliance on LinkedIn: Dental Company hit by Hunters Ransomware. BeneCare, founded in 1979…
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