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AvosLocker seized the emergency broadcasting system and threatened to publish student data if the university did not pay the ransom.
The Avos ransomware gang has captured the Bluefield University's emergency broadcasting system « RamAlert » to send students and employees SMS messages and alerts by e-mail that their data has been stolen and will be published soon.
Blufield University — a small Baptist private university in Bluefield, Virginia, which employs about 900 students.
On April 30, the university informed students and employees about the cyber attack that affected the institution’s IT system, as a result of which all exams were postponed indefinitely. Initially, the university claimed that the investigation did not find evidence of any cases of financial fraud or identity theft.
But on May 1, 2023, it turned out that the Avos ( AvosLocker ) group still has access to the RamAlert university system, an emergency alert system, used to warn students and employees by e-mail and SMS about emergency situations on campus.
« Hello, students at Blufield University! We are — Avoslocker Ransomware. We hacked the university network to extract files measuring 1.2 TB. We have data on the admission of thousands of students. Your personal information can be darkened by », the hackers said.
As evidence, as cybercriminals said, the group posted a sample of stolen data on their website on the darknet. In the messages, hackers shared instructions for accessing the leak site.
In a recent report, Avos encouraged recipients to talk about a media incident and threatened to publish all stolen data if the university did not pay them the ransom.
Later that day, a gang of extortionists published a sample of stolen data, including reports on wages and taxes ( W-2 ) of the president of the university and documents related to insurance policies.
The use of the emergency alert system is probably intended to ensure that the university administration does not underestimate the consequences of cyber attack or does not deny possible data theft, which significantly increased the pressure of hackers on the educational institution.
Bluefield University noted that efforts to restore systems are still ongoing, and no evidence has yet been found of student data abuse. The university acknowledged that the RamAlert system was indeed hacked, and urged affected students and employees not to follow the links and not respond to messages.
The Avos ransomware gang has captured the Bluefield University's emergency broadcasting system « RamAlert » to send students and employees SMS messages and alerts by e-mail that their data has been stolen and will be published soon.
Blufield University — a small Baptist private university in Bluefield, Virginia, which employs about 900 students.
On April 30, the university informed students and employees about the cyber attack that affected the institution’s IT system, as a result of which all exams were postponed indefinitely. Initially, the university claimed that the investigation did not find evidence of any cases of financial fraud or identity theft.
But on May 1, 2023, it turned out that the Avos ( AvosLocker ) group still has access to the RamAlert university system, an emergency alert system, used to warn students and employees by e-mail and SMS about emergency situations on campus.
« Hello, students at Blufield University! We are — Avoslocker Ransomware. We hacked the university network to extract files measuring 1.2 TB. We have data on the admission of thousands of students. Your personal information can be darkened by », the hackers said.
As evidence, as cybercriminals said, the group posted a sample of stolen data on their website on the darknet. In the messages, hackers shared instructions for accessing the leak site.
In a recent report, Avos encouraged recipients to talk about a media incident and threatened to publish all stolen data if the university did not pay them the ransom.
Later that day, a gang of extortionists published a sample of stolen data, including reports on wages and taxes ( W-2 ) of the president of the university and documents related to insurance policies.
The use of the emergency alert system is probably intended to ensure that the university administration does not underestimate the consequences of cyber attack or does not deny possible data theft, which significantly increased the pressure of hackers on the educational institution.
Bluefield University noted that efforts to restore systems are still ongoing, and no evidence has yet been found of student data abuse. The university acknowledged that the RamAlert system was indeed hacked, and urged affected students and employees not to follow the links and not respond to messages.