In the field of cybersecurity, cybercrime services have become a concerning outgrowth. As tech-savvy hackers have established complete business models for a profitable revenue stream, investment in Cybercrime-as-a-Service (CaaS) is skyrocketing.
Access to networks is for sale
- Underground criminals are selling unauthorized access to infiltrated company networks for up to $10,000, according to researchers.
- Between September 2019 and May 2021, they looked at 46 samples for network access on underground forums and discovered that the average price was around $9,640 and the median price was around $3,000.
- Hardknocklife, a Russian-speaking threat actor, auctioned off RDP access to a U.S. hospital’s network for $500 to $5,000 in September 2020. Patient records containing birth dates, social security numbers, and other information were reportedly obtained by threat actors as a result of the access.
- Another Russian-speaking TrueFighter cybercriminal made $60 selling the details of an American hospital.
Ransomware gangs making merry
- Ransomware gangs are seeking for ways to redirect their income into CaaS business models as ransomware-as-a-service gains traction in underground markets.
- The BlackMatter ransomware gang has recently demonstrated its readiness to pay anywhere between $3,000 and $100,000 to gain access to networks in the United States, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom.
- The group was serious about their operation, so they deposited four bitcoins ($120,000) in the cryptocurrency wallet of the Exile hacking community.
The concerning factor
- Aside from the burgeoning selling of network access, underground marketplaces are seeing the introduction of new attack tactics and channels that can be utilized for a variety of malevolent reasons.
- Another group of researchers uncovered the Prometheus Traffic Distribution System (TDS), a new cybercrime service that aided attackers in spreading malware variants like Campo Loader, QBot, IcedID, Buer Loader, and SocGholish.
- It was being advertised on cybercrime forums for $30 for two days of access or $250 for a month’s worth of access.
- In a separate event, an unnamed hacker offered a proof-of-concept for a novel technology that might allow cybercriminals to run malware on GPUs for sale.
Cybercrime campaigns have grown easier to launch than ever before, thanks to new exploits, cybercrime tools, and attack methodologies that are freely available to criminals. Some defensive strategies to mitigate the hazards associated with the CaaS paradigm include early detection of attacks and rapid sharing of information to detect them.
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