LockBit ransomware hits European firms & French Ministry of Justice

The LockBit ransomware operators claim to have hit business in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy and Germany.

The infamous LockBit ransomware gang is claiming to have hit the Ministry of Justice of France (justice.fr) as part of its recent spree of ransomware attacks. Although the details of the attack are limited, according to the group’s official website the Ministry has 13 days to meet its demands or sensitive data of it will be published on February 10th, 2022.

LockBit ransomware gangs hits Europe

As posted on hackread, the ransomware attack was not limited to the French Ministry of Justice. In fact, the group is claiming responsibility for hitting several top companies and businesses in several European countries including Spain, Italy, France, Germany, and United Kingdom.

The full list of recent alleged victims of the LockBit ransomware gang are:

1. Izo Group, Spain (Izo.es)
2. ESTPM, France (Estpm.fr)
3. City of Saint Cloud, France (Saintcloud.fr)
4. Joda, Germany (Joda.de)
5. Heubeck AG, Germany (Heubeck.de)
6. Isnardi, Italy (Isnardi.it)
7. La Ponte Marmi Srl, Italy (laponte.it)
8. AMBAU Personalservice, Germany (Ambau-team.de)
9. Girlguiding Charity, United Kingdom (Girlguidinglaser.org.uk).

Screenshots from the LockBit ransomware gang’s official website on the dark web shows their current and most recent victims.

About LockBit ransomware gang

Like other ransomware gangs, LockBit’s modus operandi involves blocking victims’ access to computer systems in exchange for a ransom payment. LockBit, which itself is malicious software, automatically vets for valuable targets, spreads the infection and encrypts all accessible computer systems on a network.

LockBit offers a ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) model, facilitating fellow cybercriminals or affiliates to launch ransomware attacks through its platform. The payments are usually divided between the malware developers and the entity hiring them for the attack.

The Lockbit ransomware gang emerged on the threat spectrum back in September 2019 and made waves in June 2021 after launching LockBit 2.0 and recruiting new partners. The gang claims to offers the “fastest data exfiltration on the market through StealBit,” noted Emsisoft in the gang’s profile.

StealBit is a data stealer that can download 100 GB of data from an infected system within 20 minutes. Some of the gang’s previous victims include Bangkok Airways, Accenture, and hundreds of other top-notch businesses across the globe.

As for the ongoing ransomware attack, at the time of writing, none of the aforementioned companies released any statement to address the issue. However, this article will be updated based on their confirmation or denial.

RELATED: LockBit Ransomware, FBI Issues Flash Alert

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