Ransomware Gangs Had Their Highest-Grossing Year In Decades

One of the most devastating types of cyberattack companies face today has been around for decades, and its perpetrators have hardly had to innovate to stay profitable. Ransomware — in which hackers encrypt a victims’ computers until a ransom is paid — has plagued nearly every sector. Publicly traded companies, hospitals and schools all have faced service disruptions or had to shut down due to their impact, Axios reports. 2024 was probably the highest-grossing year for ransomware gangs in decades.

One company paid as much as $75 million to a ransomware gang. In a cat-and-mouse game, cyber criminals constantly change their tactics as defenses against them improve. When businesses got better at backing up their key servers, many ransomware gangs started ditching encryption altogether, instead opting to steal companies’ proprietary information or shutting down systems needed to run the businesses. A set of indictments released as part of international law enforcement’s takedown of LockBit in early 2024 provided the clearest inside view of a ransomware gang. Many cybercriminals run what’s known as a ransomware-as-a-service model. The gang’s administrators write malware that steals files or encrypts servers, then they hire freelance hackers to break into companies’ digital systems, or just exploit common security flaws.