Unsplash

Ukraine Attacked with Data-Wiper Malware

Ukraine is being targeted by new data-wiping malware as the country is attacked on three sides by Russian armed forces. 

Researchers at ESET, an internet security company, and Symantec found hundreds of machines across several organizations in Ukraine were infected with HermeticWiper on 23rd February 2022. Though the data-wiper was detected, researchers found evidence suggesting that the digital assault was deliberate. 

The attack took place hours after NetBlocks stated that Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Defense, the Security Service of Ukraine, and Cabinet of Minister's websites had been impacted by network disruptions in an incident that "appears consistent with recent denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks."

The new strain of malware abuses legitimate drivers from popular disk management software EaseUS Partition Master to corrupt and destroy data. It'sIt's name comes from the fact that the attackers used a genuine code-signing certificate issued to a Cyprus-based company called Hermetica Digital Ltd.

Ukraine'sUkraine's government has described this latest wave of cyber-attacks as "on a completely different level."

Source: