Researchers spot 700 percent increase in hypervisor ransomware attacks

Researchers at security software vendor Huntress say they’ve noticed a huge increase in ransomware attacks on hypervisors and urged users to ensure they’re as secure as can be and properly backed up.

“Huntress case data revealed a stunning surge in hypervisor ransomware: its role in malicious encryption rocketed from just three percent in the first half of the year to 25 percent so far in the second half,” wrote Senior Hunt & Response Analyst Anna Pham, Technical Account Manager Ben Bernstein, and Senior Manager for Hunt & Response, Dray Agha in a Monday post.

“The primary actor driving this trend is the Akira ransomware group,” the trio warned, adding that the gang, and other attackers, are going after hypervisors “in an attempt to circumvent endpoint and network security controls.”

Huntress’s threat hunters think ransomware scum are going after hypervisors because they’re not well defended, and cracking ...