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Lee Enterprises, a major newspaper publisher with 77 newspapers and 350 weekly publications, has confirmed that a recent system outage was caused by a ransomware attack. The cyberattack disrupted newspaper operations starting in early February. The attackers are suspected of using double-extortion tactics, encrypting critical applications and exfiltrating files.

Cybercriminals launched a large-scale campaign, dubbed StaryDobry, which distributed the XMRig cryptominer through trojanized game installers. The attackers targeted users worldwide, including in Russia, Brazil, Germany, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. Cracked versions of popular games like BeamNG.drive, Garry's Mod, Dyson Sphere Program, Universe Sandbox, and Plutocracy were used to deliver the malware. Once downloaded, the installer extracts and executes a malicious payload, injecting the cryptominer into the victim's system.

ImgSrc: mnwa9ap4czgf-u1335.pressidiumcdn.com

References:

• cyberinsider.com - Lee Enterprises has officially confirmed that the cyberattack disrupting its newspaper operations since early February was a ransomware incident. - 2d
• www.bleepingcomputer.com - Newspaper publishing giant Lee Enterprises has confirmed that a ransomware attack is behind ongoing disruptions impacting the group's operations for over two weeks. - 2d
• @BleepingComputer - Newspaper publishing giant Lee Enterprises has confirmed that a ransomware attack is behind ongoing disruptions impacting the group's operations for over two weeks. - 2d
• The Register - Security: Cyber-crime - US newspaper publisher uses linguistic gymnastics to avoid saying its outage was due to ransomware - 1d
• @cybernews - Lee Enterprises expects that a recent cyberattack will most likely have a material impact on its operations. - 1d
• CyberInsider - Lee Enterprises has officially confirmed that the cyberattack disrupting its newspaper operations since early February was a ransomware incident. - 1d
• DataBreaches.Net - Newspaper publishing giant Lee Enterprises said an ongoing cyberattack is causing disruptions across its business, and is now in its third week of outages. - 1d
• Talkback Resources - Lee Enterprises Newspaper Disruptions Caused by Ransomware [for] [mal] - 22h
• securityonline.info - Cracked Games, Cryptojacked PCs: The StaryDobry Campaign - 22h
• Talkback Resources - Lee Enterprises Newspaper Disruptions Caused by Ransomware [for] [mal] - 22h
• Talkback Resources - Lee Enterprises Newspaper Disruptions Caused by Ransomware - 21h

Classification:

• HashTags: Ransomware Cyberattack LeeEnterprises
• Company: Lee Enterprises
• Target: Media, Gaming
• Attacker: Kaspersky, BlackLock
• Product: Newspapers, Cracked Games
• Feature: Ransomware
• Type: Ransomware
• Severity: Disaster