TTPwire Vol. 1 · MITRE ATT&CK·Tagged

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Coveware

Improved Security and Backups Result in Record Low Number of Ransomware Payments

Bill Siegel · 2023-01-20 · Read original ↗

ATT&CK techniques detected

23 predictions
T1021.002SMB/Windows Admin Shares
99%
“might install their own remote access tools to accomplish lateral movement or use legitimate credentials with native network and operating system tools, which may be stealthier and harder to track. the two most observed forms of lateral movement are : remote services [ t1021 ], w…”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
97%
“and choose which raas brand they want to use on a given attack with the same ease that they select which color of tee shirt to wear on a given day. ransomware attack vectors and mitre att & ck ttps observed in q4 2022 common ttps used in attacks do not change radically quarter to…”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
95%
“the quarter ( 275 employees, + 10 % from q3 2022 ). threat actors are moving slightly up the market to try and justify larger initial demands in the hopes that they result in large ransom payments, even as their own success rate declines. another sign that the absolute value of r…”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
95%
“when the economics are dire enough, they will stoop to levels of deception and duplicity to recoup their losses. most commonly observed ransomware variants in q4 2022 rank ransomware type market share % change in ranking from q3 2022 1 hive 13. 8 % + 1 2 black basta 12. 2 % + 1 3…”
T1485Data Destruction
95%
“of files is the most common form of impact observed. this may include forensics logs and artifacts as well that may inhibit an investigation. service stop [ t1489 ] : threat actors often disable services related to detection, or backup replication to maximize the impact of encryp…”
T1003OS Credential Dumping
91%
“an intermediary server to avoid direct connections to threat actor command and control infrastructure. credential access [ ta0006 ] : credential access techniques involve theft or malicious access and control of credentials like account names and passwords. techniques used to get…”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
87%
“as a service variants that are open to any threat actor. victims are typically very small businesses. in 2022, the same list grew to include some well known closed ransomware - as - a - service ( raas ) variants that typically target mid - market and larger enterprises : phobos d…”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
86%
“improved security and backups result in record low number of ransomware payments table of contentsfewer victims are payingaverage ransom paymenttypes of ransomwareattack vectors & mitre att & ck tacticsindustries impacted fewer ransomware victims are payingover the last 4 years, …”
T1219Remote Access Tools
84%
“kernel build, the owner, and processor capacity. account discovery [ t1087 ] : used by a small subset of cases where the threat actor uses sharphound to collect domain information. command and control [ ta0011 ] : command and control consists of techniques that adversaries may us…”
T1657Financial Theft
82%
“as a service variants that are open to any threat actor. victims are typically very small businesses. in 2022, the same list grew to include some well known closed ransomware - as - a - service ( raas ) variants that typically target mid - market and larger enterprises : phobos d…”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
78%
“produced by the cyber extortion economy shrinks, the operating costs to carry out an attack increase. as less victims pay, the profitability to the criminals shrinks, and the cycle repeats in a compounding manner. the end result is a smaller number of cyber criminals actors that …”
T1657Financial Theft
77%
“produced by the cyber extortion economy shrinks, the operating costs to carry out an attack increase. as less victims pay, the profitability to the criminals shrinks, and the cycle repeats in a compounding manner. the end result is a smaller number of cyber criminals actors that …”
T1055.001Dynamic-link Library Injection
74%
“[ t1055 ] is when an actor injects their malware into a legitimate windows process to try to avoid detectionimpair defenses [ t1562 ] is mainly the uninstallation or removal of antivirus software, or circumvention of anti - tampering configurations on edr or detections software. …”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
72%
“of files is the most common form of impact observed. this may include forensics logs and artifacts as well that may inhibit an investigation. service stop [ t1489 ] : threat actors often disable services related to detection, or backup replication to maximize the impact of encryp…”
T1657Financial Theft
65%
“the quarter ( 275 employees, + 10 % from q3 2022 ). threat actors are moving slightly up the market to try and justify larger initial demands in the hopes that they result in large ransom payments, even as their own success rate declines. another sign that the absolute value of r…”
T1482Domain Trust Discovery
60%
“are often used toward this post - compromise information - gathering objective. the most observed tactics of discovery we observed in q4 were : network service scanning ( t1046 ) : primarily consists of abusing advanced ip scanners to identify what network hosts are available. pr…”
T1486Data Encrypted for Impact
56%
“a major bump in keyword search volume and frequency for such terms as “ immutable backups. ” companies that are better able to defend themselves do not succumb to attacks as frequently. enterprises with well - practiced incident response processes are less likely to experience ma…”
T1087Account Discovery
49%
“are often used toward this post - compromise information - gathering objective. the most observed tactics of discovery we observed in q4 were : network service scanning ( t1046 ) : primarily consists of abusing advanced ip scanners to identify what network hosts are available. pr…”
T1021Remote Services
41%
“kernel build, the owner, and processor capacity. account discovery [ t1087 ] : used by a small subset of cases where the threat actor uses sharphound to collect domain information. command and control [ ta0011 ] : command and control consists of techniques that adversaries may us…”
T1078Valid Accounts
40%
“kernel build, the owner, and processor capacity. account discovery [ t1087 ] : used by a small subset of cases where the threat actor uses sharphound to collect domain information. command and control [ ta0011 ] : command and control consists of techniques that adversaries may us…”
T1087.002Domain Account
36%
“are often used toward this post - compromise information - gathering objective. the most observed tactics of discovery we observed in q4 were : network service scanning ( t1046 ) : primarily consists of abusing advanced ip scanners to identify what network hosts are available. pr…”
T1057Process Discovery
34%
“are often used toward this post - compromise information - gathering objective. the most observed tactics of discovery we observed in q4 were : network service scanning ( t1046 ) : primarily consists of abusing advanced ip scanners to identify what network hosts are available. pr…”
T1003.001LSASS Memory
32%
“an intermediary server to avoid direct connections to threat actor command and control infrastructure. credential access [ ta0006 ] : credential access techniques involve theft or malicious access and control of credentials like account names and passwords. techniques used to get…”

Summary

Only 37% of ransomware victims paid a ransom in Q4, a record low as security and backup continuity investments pay off.