- Australian Government up to band the Extortion Payments.
- Crypto payments in form of ransom by the business owners lets the recurrence of these extortion strategies
- Huge extortions like MediBank and others have been the primary causes of this step by the Australian Government.
The Australian Government takes it in its hand to get hold of Cyber hackers to avoid such attacks in future. It is in strong and strict opposition to paying ransoms for the cyberattacks. They have been put as to ban the payments of these crimes ransom extortions.
Australian Government All Set
There have been large attacks such as cybercrimes in Australia and the government is taking a step forward to restrict payments and put a ban on cybercrime usually in cryptocurrencies. A local business that is the sufferer of mass data contravention and following ransom demand would be the entity getting affected here.
As said by a Government Minister, Australia ‘Australia is taking into consideration the bid to impair the cybercriminal business model.
Government itself was looking for some tools to minimize these economies, affecting acts of charging ransoms and extorting huge economic gains from the affected users. ‘Government is in thought of criminalizing ransom payments as an essential part of the Government’s cyber strategy’, said Claire O’Neil, Minister of Home Affairs and Cyber security.
Major Australian Attack
Australian Cyber Security Center (ACSC) received a report in January 2020, about a ransom incident affecting a large Australian transport and Logistics company. The attack impacted the network and telephone systems of the company.
Handsome Ransom Update
Till date noted the highest ransom paid for the cybercrime in Australia amounted to $40 Million to a hacker group that was Russia based. Reportedly the organization with this huge amount got its softwares freed from the malicious software attack with help of CNA Financial . CNA broadly offers business insurance solutions that allow better handling of risks and gainful development. It offers an index of property and casualty business.
Ransomware Attacker
The WannaCry ransomware attack in May 2017 was reported as a worldwide ransom crypto worm that made computers, its target which had Microsoft Windows Operating system. It encrypted data and demanded ransom payment in the Bitcoin cryptocurrency.
Remote Desk Protocol (RDP) exploitation, Phishing, and software vulnerabilities are accepted as the root causes of ransomware contagiousness.
Medibank: Case Study
In early days of November 2022, Medibank expressed its declining thoughts about the ransom payment after the cyberpunks established their reach to their data of 9.7 Million on going and former consumers in which the number of 1.8 Million were the International consumers.
The data accessed by these thugs ‘could have been swept’ the company established. Sensitive data of health care claims, information about drug treatments and abortions too, for around 480,000 individuals was in it as well.
Established by AFP’s commissioner Reece Shaw, the group had been identified to be a Russian mob and they were the people to blame.
Criminalizing Extortion Payments
The Government as a measure of lowering the risks of such suspicious acts of hacking has thought of criminalizing the extortion payments done by the company. It’s expected to gush the visibility of attacks further upcoming that would force companies in future to stay shut and keep away from regulatory perusal.
Such a situation has a great possibility of turning into a condition where the hackers get an advantage over everything to extort the maximum from their sufferers. If a company does fulfill the extortion demands, just to save their business it could be a second opportunity to these goons for a second go to their demands.
A Government statement announced that, it will be like the steps to start from looking, prey and diminish cyber criminal gangs with a precedence on ransomware threat groups, systematizing groups based on the loss they can bring to our national interests.
It follows an alliance of Government’s cybersecurity leaders from approximately 40 countries earlier this month proclaiming their plans to work along to put an end to ransomware bombards.
The step for sure will set up a discretionary International Counter Ransomware Task Force, piloted by Australia’s Government, to energize the information sharing about threats and path the finances of ransomware gangs.