Cybercrime group Maze ransomware confirms shut down
Maze cybercrime gang plans to shut down its notorious operations after rising to be one of the most prominent players in ransomware attacks. Maze ransomware, began its operations in 2019, and became more active in November 2020. The news was doing rounds for a few months as security researchers found out this news.
A website, in an email conversation, with a ransomware attacker learnt that the Maze gang had stopped encrypting new victims in September 2020 and that it was attempting to compel its existing victims to pay their ransoms in anticipation of winding down its activity.
Following that conversation, the website reached out to the Maze gang to confirm the rumours. The ransomware attackers responded by telling the site to await a press release.
Thereafter, those responsible for Maze began cleaning up its data leaks site by removing all but two victims whose data had previously been published in their entirety on the portal.
Maze ransomware made headlines in November 2019 when it was the first crypto-malware strain to steal victims’ unencrypted data before activating its encryption routine. Since then, numerous other ransomware operations have adopted this technique.
The Maze gang went on from there to form an “extortion cartel” in which it shared resources and techniques with some of the attack groups who joined as members.
News of Maze’s shutdown and the exodus of affiliates to Egregor highlights the ongoing dynamism of the ransomware threat landscape.
Notwithstanding these changes, one thing remains constant: organizations and users alike need to take steps to protect themselves. One of the best ways they can do that is by working to prevent a ransomware infection from occurring in the first place.
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