On October 3, a group of hackers attacked the renowned Brazilian government-controlled banking institution Bank of Brasilia and demanded 50 BTC in exchange for not leaking the data of its customers.
According to the local media outlet Tecmundo, one of the hackers going by the name of “Crydat” got in touch with them to let them know that the Bank was required to pay the equivalent of 5.2 million Brazilian reais.
The demands of the hackers have received no formal response from the Brazilian bank. However, the Special Police Department for the Suppression of Cybercrime of the Federal Police is looking into the issue.
LockBit ransomware group
The hackers employed the “LockBit” ransomware from one of the biggest international ransomware groups, which goes by the same name as its program, according to unnamed sources Tecnomundo spoke with. LockBit had targeted roughly 350 companies worldwide as of the beginning of 2021.
Since 2019, the LockBit ransomware group has been one of the top criminal organizations focused on information theft and corporate extortion. Since the takedown of the Conti gang, the organization has been accountable for 40% of all ransomware attacks.
The group recently updated its LockBit ransomware to version 3.0. In addition, they have a bounty program that pays out up to $1 million (payable in the privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcash) to those who identify vulnerabilities, suggestions for development, and other acts.
This criminal group has carried out numerous attacks in Mexico, Venezuela, Peru, Panama, and Argentina. Most recently, they attacked OSDE, a healthcare services network founded in 1972, and stole 140 gigabytes of data about patients, physicians, and affiliates in exchange for $300K in cryptocurrency. However, it appears that OSDE did not make the payment because the organization posted all the details on its website.
Brazil has one of the highest rates of bitcoin fraud in all of Latin America, to the point where the Brazilian court system has had to collaborate with the FBI and CIA to bolster its special forces and enhance its tracking methods.
Moreover, Brazilian authorities have recently collaborated with U.S. HSI to nab crypto criminals, as TheCoinRise reported.
