Key facts:
According to Kaspersky, the devaluation of local currencies will increase interest in cryptocurrencies.
Targeted ransomware attacks are projected to increase in 2021.
According to the report by the security firm Kaspersky, as the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic affect the economy throughout 2021, there could be an increase in crimes related to bitcoin.
In the recently released Financial Threats Report for 2021, Kaspersky asserts that attacks aimed at stealing bitcoins will become more attractive for cybercriminals next year. This, while nations are suffering the consequences of a weakening of their local currencies.
“The pandemic is likely to trigger a massive wave of poverty, and that invariably translates into more people turning to crime, including cybercrime. We could see certain economies collapse and local currencies plummet. “
Kaspersky report.
The crisis generated by the issuance of inorganic money is one of the reasons that this post the greatest interest in cryptocurrencies. Source: stephenbayer / pixabay.com
On this subject, although the firm does not delve into details about the effects of the pandemic on the economy, it outlines the highest interest generated by cryptocurrencies in the framework of a crisis generated by the issuance of inorganic money and the paralysis of many productive systems in various parts of the world.
In this context, analysts think that the focus would be on bitcoin as the most popular cryptocurrency. However, the study makes a difference depending on the type of crime. It is then expected that hackers operating with ransomware (data hijacking) will change tack and move away from pioneer cryptocurrency.
This change would respond to the interest of handling cryptocurrencies with greater privacy, such as monero, so as not to leave traces that the authorities can follow on the blockchain. “Then they will be converted into bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies,” says Kaspersky’s publication. In this way, privacy-based crypto assets would become the “transit currencies” for criminals.
The new tactic would seek to counteract the improved detection capabilities that authorities have developed to monitor and seize cryptocurrency accounts. They cite as an example the recent withholding of funds by the government from United States. They refer to the Justice Department and the seizure of more than $ 1 billion in BTC from an account linked to Silk Road.
It is thus assumed that instead of requiring victims to pay ransom for their data in BTC, hackers from ransomware gangs will prefer to use monero (XRM).
This trend has already been observed this year. For a few months it has been associated the increase in transactions in monero with increased use of XMR on the darknet (dark web), as reported by CriptoNoticias last July.
Increase in ransomware attacks expected
Having seen this year that ransomware attacks have been successful and have received extensive media coverage, the report expects there to be a significant increase in these types of crimes by 2021.
In these cases, it is common to demand payment in cryptocurrencies. In addition to this, this 2020 the application of double extortion to victims, threatening to leak data if the ransom is not paid.
“Organizations, which can be affected by data loss and grueling recovery processes, are being targeted, with more cybercriminals targeting them with ransomware or DDoS attacks or even both,” the report says.
Another key point regarding ransomware is that this year the human factor has been exploited as an initial infection vector. The story about an attempt to infect Tesla is a good example of this (they offered payment to an employee if they participated in the crime). When it comes to very high-profile targets, threat actors don’t hesitate to dedicate time and resources to work within the MICE (Money, Ideology, Commitment and Ego) framework to reach victim networks.
Kaspersky report.
Following the trend of hackers towards innovation, the study’s forecasts indicate that a increased use of zero-day attacks, those that occur when vulnerabilities unknown to developers are exploited.
In this sense, it is believed that the authorities will also apply more energetic measures against the world of cybercrime.
Kaspersky talks about the possible expansion of the “persistent engagement” strategy against financial crime. This would include sanctions for countries that show a lack of determination to combat cybercrime originating from their territory.
The above measure somehow has already been implemented by the Treasury Department The United States, which warned in October that victims of ransomware attacks who pay to break free from hijacking could face harsh penalties.