US’ VUMC suffered a Meow ransomware cyberattack

The notorious Meow ransomware group has allegedly attacked the Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) in the US and compromised its database.

Based on reports, the healthcare provider has launched an investigation into the cybersecurity incident. This renowned medical institution, with seven hospitals and numerous healthcare facilities across Nashville, Tennessee, serves over three million patients annually. Hence, it is a critical sector in the state’s healthcare system.

VUMC is also one of the largest healthcare firms in Tennessee since it is home to more than 40,000 employees and over 1,700 beds.

 

The Meow ransomware group has included the hospital on its leak site during Thanksgiving.

 

Investigations uncovered the incident on Thanksgiving when the hospital system found itself added to the leak site of the Meow ransomware group. This group is a relatively new threat that cybersecurity experts are diligently studying.

A VUMC spokesperson confirmed the cyber incident, but they have yet to reveal crucial details, such as the specific date of the attack, whether it involved ransomware and the extent of its impact.

Still, they have assured everyone that the preliminary results from their investigation indicate that the compromised database did not contain personal or protected information about patients or employees.

The Meow ransomware is one of the offshoots of the now-defunct Conti ransomware. Conti’s source code was exposed by its affiliates in March 2022 after they objected to the group’s stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, leading to the group’s disbanding in May 2022. However, various cybercriminal gangs have taken advantage of the opportunity to create different variants of the Meow ransomware.

Adding to the complexity, Meow ransomware group members reportedly stopped activities earlier this year, but they provided publicly accessible links to private keys and decryptors. As of now, it is still a mystery whether the recent campaign is linked to these earlier attacks.

A separate investigation claimed that the Meow group might not have employed ransomware in the recent attacks, suggesting the possibility of an extortion-only strategy. The researchers emphasised that such a strategy is more straightforward to launch and may not involve the complex process of breaching targets.

As the investigation continues, the cybersecurity incident at VUMC raises concerns about the evolving landscape of ransomware threats. It highlights the need for robust cybersecurity measures in critical healthcare sectors.