'Anatomy' Of A Ransomware Attack

By Ray Birch

BALTIMORE—Credit unions should brace for almost a month of major problems if they’re victimized by a ransomware attack, according to one cybersecurity expert, whose insights into the “anatomy” of a ransomware attack are coming at the same time nearly 60 CUs are currently trying to restore their own operations.

As those credit unions have come to learn, it takes on average 22 days to get through a ransomware attack and get to the other side, that same expert stated.

That information and additional insights were shared during a webinar hosted by cybersecurity firm Think/Stack, which that was held to provide CUs with insights and answers regarding ransomware in light of the recent attack that that continues to affect those five-dozen CUs hit by an attack on a common vendor.

“We're all being targeted, and this (recent attack) could have happened to anybody,” said Cal Bowman, Think/Stack VP of client innovation and strategy, referring to an attack on the CUSO Ongoing Operations that in turn affected the data processor Fedcomp. “So, it's really important we all recognize that every one of you here has vendors, has partners that are vulnerable. Therefore, the question is, are you ready to respond to any type of large-scale event that really can cripple your organization?”

What’s Been Learned

Bowman said a goal of the webinar, which was attended by more than 300 credit unions, was to walk through what happens during a ransomware attack and share what his company has learned supporting CUs that have been victimized by such attacks.

Think/Stack VP of Security and Risk Jennifer Anthony said when a ransomware attack occurs in an organization it frequently creates the “fog of war.”

“What you will see in a generalized ransomware attack is the tactical and technical pieces that begin to happen over the first couple days,” Anthony explained.

But at the same time a credit union is seeking to find a tactical path through that fog, the emotional side of the battle must be given attention, as employees struggle to get the CU operating again, Anthony said.

“There is confusion and concern,” she said. “Maybe someone can't get on to a system they previously could access. Maybe there's a service that's not working and folks are starting to feel confused about what's going on. All this is happening as your technical teams in the background are beginning to quickly investigate the source of the problem.”

Anthony emphasized a credit union involved in a ransomware attack should be prepared to spend at least three weeks dealing with it.  

The Internal Threat

As CUToday.info has reported and as credit unions are frequently warned, ransomware attacks often occur due to an employee opening the door by falling for a phishing scam or downloading a file they believe to be safe.

“This is a function of human performance,” she noted. “We all begin to look for who's at fault, who did something they were not supposed to do that caused this. What we tell organizations is that when you get caught in that space, you should not spend a lot of time trying to figure out who to point the finger at, (but instead spend) time trying to figure out how to get out of the situation.”

Not surprisingly, Anthony described the working environment following an attack as “chaotic.”

‘Everyone’s Scared’

“Everyone's scared. We're not sure what's going on and maybe we have members who are really angry. Maybe we have board members that are really angry, or leaders that are really angry,” she said. “The goal at this point is to figure out how to get past it. We'll figure out who's to blame or what's to blame, or how we can prevent it in the future at a later point.”

It's an issue credit unions should take seriously, according to Anthony, who said there is a growing ransomware threat to the not-for-profit co-ops.

“In the last seven months we worked with six credit unions who individually found themselves in this space,” she said. “This is something that's happening on a regular basis, across all industries.”

Anthony reminded that as the credit union moves through a ransomware incident many employees will be feelin remorse and concern over fellow workers in IT who are working feverishly to restore operations.

“They feel like they are at fault for what is going on, and that is a very difficult place to be,” she said. “The technical teams are trying to figure out how to remediate the situation. I've been in organizations where technical teams are working nonstop, around the clock, for days and days. The credit union then is trying to figure out how do we feed people? How are we going to send people home to sleep so they can come back and be effective—because you are in this fight for a long time and there is a lot of pressure on everyone.”

Like Being in a Battle

Anthony likened the experience to those who fight in a war.

“I spent 20 years in the in the United States military, and this is a roller coaster akin to what a service member might experience in their daily lives—and this can be traumatic,” she said.

She urged credit unions to consider where they are vulnerable.  

“We know 93% of ransomware attacks are in Windows-based environment,” she said. “If we listed them in order of frequency of occurrence, how they occur, here's what they would be: Number one is e-mail phishing campaigns. Number two would be (remote desktop protocol or RDP) vulnerabilities. And number three would be software vulnerabilities.”

The Long-Term Affects

While those 22 days are the typical time from attack to restoration of service, Anthony said the repercussions are felt for many months afterward.

“With the recovery efforts and return to operation, the average time for an organization to move through that is about nine months,” she said. “The attack is not the only thing organizations have to grapple with; there are follow-on impacts that are significant. If you're an organization that has about 500 employees, your average recovery cost is going to be about $3.1 million. If an attacker is successful in extracting information from your environment, you'll have to deal with the impacts of that.”

Steps to Take

What steps should credit unions take today to prevent an attack? CUToday.info will share those in a follow-up report.