The London branch of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) has suffered a ransomware attack that allowed hackers to steal a large amount of sensitive data.
A report by The RegistryCiting an announcement posted on the threat actor's data leak site, it says ICBC has until Sept. 13 to pay the ransom demand or face having its data leaked.
The ransomware attack on ICBC's London branch was carried out by a group known as Hunters International, which claims to have stolen 5.2 million files, the equivalent of 6.6TB of sensitive data.
Ransomware attack on ICBC
For those with shorter memories, Hunters International may seem like a relatively new player in the ransomware game. However, some experts claim that it is actually a rebrand of the infamous Hive ransomware, which was one of the largest and most dangerous groups of its time, until it was dismantled by the FBI in July 2022, when law enforcement managed to infiltrate the collective and obtain decryption keys.
Hunters International emerged about a year ago as a threat actor that focuses more on data exfiltration and less on system encryption. Some researchers argue that creating, maintaining and deploying encryption systems is too cumbersome and that simply stealing files is just as lucrative.
ICBC is the world's largest bank in terms of total assets and market capitalization. It is owned by the Chinese state and is a key player in the country's financial system. The bank offers a wide range of services, such as corporate and personal banking, wealth management, and investment banking. ICBC has a vast global presence with branches and subsidiaries in major financial centers around the world. As such, it plays a major role in financing infrastructure projects both within China and internationally.
The bank has not yet responded to any requests for comment or commented on the incident.
Through The Registry
