Accenture Ransomware Attack Confirms The Importance Of Cybersecurity

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Accenture Ransomware Attack Confirms The
Importance Of Cybersecurity
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What is LockBit Ransomware?
01
How to Protect Against Ransomware A Lesson to
Learn
02
Final Thoughts
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Accenture Ransomware Attack Confirms The
Importance Of Cybersecurity
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Accenture Ransomware Attack Confirms The
Importance Of Cybersecurity

• Accenture, a global IT services and consulting
  company, on Aug 11, 2021, acknowledged that it
  was hit by a ransomware attack on its systems on
  July 30. The hacker group reportedly used LockBit
  ransomware to steal the companys sensitive
  client information and work materials.

The news was first released by CNBC reporter
Eamon Javers who noted that the group has taunted
the company on the Dark Web stating These people
are beyond privacy and security. I really hope
that their services are better than what I saw as
an insider. If youre interested in buying some
databases, reach us.
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Accenture Ransomware Attack Confirms The
Importance Of Cybersecurity
In an emailed response to journalists clarifying
this situation, Accenture said, Through our
security controls and protocols, we identified
irregular activity in one of our environments. We
immediately contained the matter and isolated the
affected servers. We fully restored our affected
servers from back up.
There was no impact on Accentures operations, or
on our clients systems. On Aug, 11, Accenture
sent an internal memo saying, The documents
stolen by hackers referenced a small number of
clients, but none of the information is of a
highly sensitive nature.
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Accenture Ransomware Attack Confirms The
Importance Of Cybersecurity

• While the company hasnt released any official
  statement on ransomware amount, according to a
  tweet by dark web and cybercrime monitoring firm
  Cyble, the group has demanded 50 million from
  Accenture in exchange for 6 TB of data.
• This incident has once again brought into light
  the long-standing issue of cybersecurity in the
  business world.

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What is LockBit Ransomware?
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What is LockBit Ransomware?
LockBit, formerly known as ABCD ransomware, is
a relatively new ransomware that encrypts files
using AES encryption and blocks users from
accessing infected systems until a ransom is
paid. Since LockBit ransomware mainly uses
automated processes, it is currently one of the
most efficient ransomware variants on the market.
It works as ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) where
the ransom payments are divided between the
attacking affiliates and LockBit developer team.
Since large enterprises and government
organizations have heavy funds to put down, they
are the prime targets of this ransomware rather
than individuals.
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What is LockBit Ransomware?
The first attack using LockBit was reported in
September 2019, and since then it has been making
headlines with strikes on big players, including
Cognizant. The most unfortunate fact is that
there is little an organization can do once a
ransomware attack has compromised its systems.
This especially stands true for the double
extortion ransomware attack, as in the case of
Accenture, where the cybercriminal not only
encrypts the data on the companys server, but
also exfiltrates it, meaning copies and transfers
it to its own servers to sell the sensitive
insiders information.
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What is LockBit Ransomware?
Refusal to fulfil the ransomware demand means
going through a hectic and stressful process of
restoring data from backups, reinstating the
functionality of systems and databases, and
facing the risk of losing reputation and client
humiliation if the data is exposed by the
hackers.
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How to Protect Against Ransomware A Lesson to
Learn
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How to Protect Against Ransomware A Lesson to
Learn
For many companies, paying the ransom can be an
easier option as this may allow them to be
operational quickly without generating any
headlines. However, a recent study by Cybereason
has found that 80 of organizations that pay a
ransom end up getting attacked again, and almost
50 of them are hit by the same hacker group.
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How to Protect Against Ransomware A Lesson to
Learn
So, the only way to protect against any
ransomware attack is to have effective
cybersecurity measures in place in the first
place. Accentures incident is a strong
indicator that it's high time for every business
to invest in cybersecurity.
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Final Thoughts
03
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What is LockBit Ransomware?
The ransomware attack on Accenture comes as a
shocking surprise as the company has been
actively engaged in cybersecurity acquisitions
since 2017, after it failed to secure its AWS S3
storage bucket, leaving sensitive company data
open to public access.
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What is LockBit Ransomware?
In 2020, it acquired Context Information Security
to help financial institutions and government
organizations respond to advanced cyber threats.
It also grabbed the headlines by acquiring
Symantec Cyber Security Services Unit from
Broadcom. These acquisitions confirm that
Accenture has a clear roadmap for improving its
security posture.
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What is LockBit Ransomware?
Recently, on July 21, Accenture completed its
acquisition of French cybersecurity services
provider Openminded, a strategic move that added
about 100 highly skilled cybersecurity
professionals to Accenture Securitys workforce
and expanded Accentures cybersecurity presence
and capabilities in France and Europe.