Rhysida attacks ASP Basilicata
Incident Date:
February 15, 2024
Overview
Title
Rhysida attacks ASP Basilicata
Victim
ASP Basilicata
Attacker
Rhysida
Location
First Reported
February 15, 2024
Rhysida Ransomware Attack Disrupts Italian Healthcare
Overview of the Attack
On January 28, an attack on ASP Basilicata caused considerable disruption across several hospitals and health facilities, including ASM Matera, IRCCS CROB, Azienda Sanitaria di Potenza, and AOR San Carlo. The Rhysida ransomware group has claimed responsibility for the cyberattack by making an announcement through a post on their blog. The cybercriminals have uploaded some samples to their data leak site and are demanding a ransom of 15 Bitcoins, with a payment deadline set for 22 February.
ASP Basilicata is a company that operates in the Government industry. It employs 501 to 1000 people and has $100M-$250M of revenue. The company is headquartered in Potenza, Basilicata, Italy.
About Rhysida Ransomware
Rhysida is a Ransomware as a Service (RaaS) that was first observed in May of 2023 and has become one of the more prevalent threats in the latter half of 2023. Rhysida engages in data exfiltration for double extortion and maintains both a leaks site and a victim support portal on TOR. They are thought to be responsible for attacks against the Chilean military and more recently against Prospect Medical Holdings which impacted services at hundreds of clinics and hospitals across the US.
In Q4-2023, the FBI and CISA released a joint advisory on Rhysida operations. Rhysida has been steadily increasing its attack volume and continuing to expand the targeted industries, but volume is modest compared to leaders. Rhysida deploys its ransomware through various methods, including Cobalt Strike or similar frameworks, as well as phishing campaigns. Analysis of Rhysida ransomware samples suggests that the group is still in the early stages of development. The ransomware lacks certain standard features in contemporary ransomware, such as VSS removal. However, the group follows the practices of modern multi-extortion groups by threatening to distribute the stolen data publicly.
Impact and Response
Upon execution, Rhysida displays a cmd.exe window and scans all files on local drives. Victims are instructed to contact the attackers using the TOR-based portal and their unique identifier provided in the ransom notes. The group only accepts payment in Bitcoin (BTC) and provides victims with instructions on purchasing and using BTC through the victim portal. Victims are also given an additional form on the payment portal to provide authentication and contact details to the attackers.
The Rhysida ransom notes are written as PDF documents and placed in the affected folders on the targeted drives.
Recent Ransomware Attacks
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