The US online tax filing platform eFile.com appears to have suffered (another) ransomware attack.
Earlier this week, LockBit ransomware operators added the company to their extortion site, threatening to leak files stolen during the raid. The Registry However, the company has yet to confirm or deny the attack.
So we don't know if the attack happened, and even if it did, what kind of data the hackers stole, who was affected, and how many people are at risk.
Tax season
eFile.com is not a government organization and is not affiliated in any way with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). It is a private, commercial online tax filing platform that allows users to electronically prepare and file their federal and state tax returns. It offers both free and paid options, and comes with a user-friendly interface and step-by-step guidance to simplify the tax filing process. However, it is authorized by the IRS to operate its business.
Cybercriminals are no strangers to attacks on the IRS or other tax-related businesses. However, attacks typically occur during tax season (between early January and mid-April each year), as during that period hackers have a high chance of not being detected quickly. Most often, criminals impersonate the IRS and send phishing emails to their victims to get them to install malware or share sensitive information.
In some cases, criminals obtained so much identifiable information that they stole a person's identity and filed their tax return, essentially stealing money from them.
This attack, which occurred outside of tax season, raises many questions. The Register, for example, suspects that the criminals could be recycling data from a 2022 data breach. They could also be outright lying, in an attempt to regain some fame after being thwarted by law enforcement.
Through The Registry
