NEWS: The Cyberattacks of May 2023: A Global Review
Sophisticated Attacks Around the World.
1. The Volt Typhoon Campaign:
May 2023 was marked by a series of major cyberattacks around the world. The US State Department warned that China has the capability to launch cyberattacks against critical infrastructure, including oil and gas pipelines and rail systems. These statements were made after researchers discovered that a Chinese hacking group was spying on these networks. A multinational alert revealed that this Chinese espionage campaign was targeting military and government targets in the United States.
Microsoft analysts, who identified the campaign under the name Volt Typhoon, said it could disrupt critical communications infrastructure between the United States and the Asia region during future crises, a nod to growing tensions between the United States and China over Taiwan and other issues. The group targeted critical infrastructure organisations in the US Pacific territory of Guam and used security company Fortinet's FortiGuard devices to break into target networks.
2. Attacks Across the Globe:
Besides this major espionage campaign, May saw numerous other cyberattacks around the world, affecting various sectors and industries.
- Atos (FRA): French IT services giant Atos was the victim of a cyberattack that paralysed some of its online services and its staff.
- Jordan's Ministry of Justice: Jordan's Ministry of Justice reported a cyberattack on its IT system. The attack is under investigation.
- B. Braun (DEU): the German healthcare group B. Braun has reported a cyberattack that affected its operations. The group has nearly 64,000 employees.
- Swatch Group (CHE): Swatch Group, the Swiss watchmaking giant, was the victim of a cyberattack that disrupted its operations. Efforts are under way to resolve the problem.
- Cloudflare (USA): Cloudflare, a US company specialising in website security and performance services, was the victim of a cyberattack on 25 May 2023.
- CNH Industrial (ITA): CNH Industrial, a global leader in industrial equipment, was hit by a cyberattack on 25 May 2023.
3. Impact on Hospitals and the Media:
Hospitals and the media were not spared by these attacks. In Germany, the IT network of the "Gesundheit Nord" hospital group in Bremen was disconnected from the internet after suspicious activity was discovered. Fortunately, the hospitals were able to keep communicating with one another, but employees could not access the internet.
At the same time, KD Hospital in India fell victim to a ransomware attack, blocking access to all of its online systems, including patient data. The hackers demanded a ransom of $70,000 in bitcoin to decrypt the files. Hospital staff worked manually for a day before the servers were operational again.
In the media sector, the newspaper The Philadelphia Inquirer was the victim of a cyberattack that disrupted its operations over the weekend. The newspaper was unable to print its Sunday edition, but was able to keep publishing online.
4. French Companies in the Crosshairs:
In France, the managed services provider Group DIS reported a major cyberattack. The websites of many of its clients became unavailable. The attack was claimed by Alphv/BlackCat on 15 May. Lacroix Electronics, the Côtes-d’Armor département and Actu.fr are among the collateral victims.
The company LACROIX also suffered a targeted attack on its sites in France, Germany and Tunisia. Some systems were encrypted and an analysis is under way to identify the data that was exfiltrated. The affected sites are closed for the week, with reopening planned for 22 May.