Alert - Increase in DDoS Extortion Activity

Number: AL21-010
Date: 16 June 2021

AUDIENCE

This Alert is intended for IT professionals and managers of notified organizations.

PURPOSE

An Alert is used to raise awareness of a recently identified cyber threat Cyber threatA threat actor, using the internet, who takes advantage of a known vulnerability in a product for the purposes of exploiting a network and the information the network carries. that may impact cyber information assets, and to provide additional detection DetectionThe monitoring and analyzing of system events in order to identify unauthorized attempts to access system resources. and mitigation advice to recipients.  The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security Cyber securityThe protection of digital information, as well as the integrity of the infrastructure housing and transmitting digital information. More specifically, cyber security includes the body of technologies, processes, practices and response and mitigation measures designed to protect networks, computers, programs and data from attack, damage or unauthorized access so as to ensure confidentiality, integrity and availability. ("Cyber Centre") is also available to provide additional assistance regarding the content of this Alert to recipients as requested.

OVERVIEW

The Cyber Centre is aware of a recent increase in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS DDOSSee Distributed denial-of-service attack. ) activity which is being carried out by malicious actors to extort victims for payment. The Cyber Centre has received reports from trusted partners of Canadian organizations being targeted by this activity.

DETAILS

The Cyber Centre is aware of open-source reporting describing a recent increase in DDoS extortion activity. The Cyber Centre has also received reports from trusted partners indicating an increase in activity targeting Canadian organizations in multiple sectors.

Although reports vary on the techniques used to carry out the DDoS, the activity consists of contact from the threat actor, a demonstration of the DDoS capability, and demands of payment in Bitcoin as ransom to cease the DDoS activity [1],[2].

In cases of DDoS extortion, see the Cyber Centre’s guidance for Preventing and Recovering from extortion for guidance on dealing with demands of payment [3]. Refer also to the Cyber Centre’s guidance for Protecting Your Organization Against Denial-of-Service Attacks [4] for more information.

REFERENCES

[1] The Rapid Resurgence of DDoS Extortion
https://blogs.akamai.com/2021/06/the-rapid-resurgence-of-ddos-extortion-that-didnt-take-long.html

[2] Ransom DDoS Extortion Actor “Fancy Lazarus” Returns
https://www.proofpoint.com/us/blog/threat-insight/ransom-ddos-extortion-actor-fancy-lazarus-returns

[3] How to Prevent and Recover
https://cyber.gc.ca/en/guidance/ransomware-how-prevent-and-recover-itsap00099

[4] Protecting Your Organization Against Denial-of-Service Attacks
https://cyber.gc.ca/en/guidance/protecting-your-organization-against-denial-service-attacks-itsap80100

NOTE TO READERS
The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (Cyber Centre) operates as part of the Communications Security Establishment.  We are Canada's national authority on cyber security and we lead the government's response to cyber security events. As Canada's national computer security incident response team, the
Cyber Centre works in close collaboration with government departments, critical infrastructure Critical infrastructureProcesses, systems, facilities, technologies, networks, assets, and services essential to the health, safety, security, or economic well-being of Canadians and the effective functioning of government. Critical infrastructure can be stand-alone or interconnected and interdependent within and across provinces, territories, and national borders. Disruptions of critical infrastructure could result in catastrophic loss of life, adverse economic effects, and significant harm to public confidence. , Canadian businesses and international partners to prepare for, respond to, mitigate, and recover from cyber events. We do this by providing authoritative advice and support, and coordinating information
sharing and incident response. The Cyber Centre is outward-facing, welcoming partnerships that help build a stronger, more resilient cyber space in Canada.