Technology Giant Olympus Hit by BlackMatter Ransomware

Olympus said in a brief statement that it is 'currently investigating a potential cybersecurity incident' affecting its European, Middle East and Africa computer network. From a report: 'Upon detection of suspicious activity, we immediately mobilized a specialized response team including forensics experts, and we are currently working with the highest priority to resolve this issue. As part of the investigation, we have suspended data transfers in the affected systems and have informed the relevant external partners,' the statement said. But according to a person with knowledge of the incident, Olympus is recovering from a ransomware attack that began in the early morning of September 8. The person shared details of the incident prior to Olympus acknowledging the incident on Saturday. A ransom note left behind on infected computers claimed to be from the BlackMatter ransomware group.

'Your network is encrypted, and not currently operational,' it reads. 'If you pay, we will provide you the programs for decryption.' The ransom note also included a web address to a site accessible only through the Tor Browser that's known to be used by BlackMatter to communicate with its victims. Brett Callow, a ransomware expert and threat analyst at Emsisoft, told TechCrunch that the site in the ransom note is associated with the BlackMatter group.

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