Dual Ransomware Strikes: Rise and Prepare for Defense

The rise of dual ransomware attacks is becoming a major concern for organizations as threat actors deploy multiple ransomware variants against the same victim. The attacks typically take place within 10 days of each other, with the majority occurring within 48 hours. This emerging trend presents significant challenges for organizations, as they face increased data encryption, data exfiltration, and financial losses. Recovery from these attacks is complex, as organizations may need to deal with different ransomware strains and navigate negotiations with multiple threat actors. Dual ransomware attacks can have a devastating impact on an organization, including damage to its brand, emotional toll on incident response teams, increased financial strain, and potential attrition of IT staff. To minimize the risk of being targeted by dual ransomware attacks, organizations should focus on effective incident response and preparation. This includes implementing strong monitoring and logging capabilities, conducting penetration testing and tabletop exercises, and using cyber insurance as part of a comprehensive risk management strategy. Understanding how threat actors gain access and sell it is also crucial in developing defensive strategies. Despite efforts to prevent these attacks, ransomware is expected to continue in 2024, with artificial intelligence likely being used by threat actors to target victims more creatively.