LockBit ransomware gang claims the attack on California DOF

The LockBit ransomware group has claimed the cyberattack that impacted the state of California’s Department of Finance. Based on reports, the California DOF has already initiated an investigation alongside federal agencies and the state to protect related individuals against potential cyber threats.

The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services confirmed the ransomware attack. They stated that the DOF was compromised by a cyber incident and did not elaborate on more details.

According to the Office of Emergency Services, their team proactively identified the unwanted breach against the DOF system through cooperation with their national and state affiliates.

Subsequently, after the researchers identified the threat, their team immediately launched digital security and threat-hunting experts to evaluate the scope of the intrusion and to contain and mitigate any chance of re-entry.

As of now, it is still being determined how much destruction the attackers did and how they breached the department’s system. Fortunately, California disclosed that the state funds remained safe during the cyberattack.

 

The LockBit ransomware operators claimed they had stolen 75GB of stolen files.

 

Last week, the LockBit ransomware group published on their data leak website that they had breached the Californian DOF and stolen financial documents, IT documents, databases, and confidential data.

The threat group proved their claim by exposing screenshots containing files they allegedly stole from the DOF systems. The attackers have published screenshots of the directories and files they stored within their database.

The leaked sample showed more than 240,000 files in over 114,000 folders, which amounts to over 75GB of data. Furthermore, the LockBit group’s data leak website showed a counter to get paid by December 24. Suppose the group has yet to receive their asked ransom; they will expose all stolen files to the public.

The LockBit ransomware actors are still a financially driven group. Therefore, big-time private and government properties should watch out for their attacks since they are more attracted to entities that could provide them with lucrative amounts of money.