Before we go further let’s get the formalities over with. Ransomware is a type of malware that encrypts the victim’s files. The attacker can then demand a ransom from the victim if they want their files restored and decrypted. Hackers usually perform these kinds of attacks on bigwig companies that don’t want their data to be leaked to the public.
Some examples of ransomware attacks would the one on CD Projekt Red. This latest attack is on none other than Apple. The ransomware attack resulted in the theft of a lot of engineering and manufacturing schematics of many current and future products. The products are mostly from Quanta, which is a company that manufactures MacBooks and other Apple products, based in Taiwan.
The attack was carried out by a known hacker group called REvil, who would remember them for their attack on Acer in March. REvil is a Russian hacking group that also goes by the name, Sodinokibi. The group has demanded a ransom of $50 million from Quanta who refused to pay the amount. So, They have even turned to Apple itself, demanding that they pay the ransom or they’ll continue to post images from the data leak daily.
The hacker group has already posted a few pictures on April 20th in order to attest to their claim. Quanta also confirmed that its servers were attacked in a statement, “Quanta Computer’s information security team has worked with external IT experts in response to cyberattacks on a small number of Quanta servers.”
Quanta has also stated that “there’s no material impact on the company’s business operation”. Among the data, REvil has already leaked include Apple’s newly revealed iMac redesign. The schematics include the phrase “This is the property of Apple and it must be returned” on almost every page lending credibility to the hackers’ claims. The leak also includes manufacturing diagrams for Apple’s 2021 M1 MacBook Air and also of an unreleased laptop.
Apple has yet to reply to REvil’s demands but we’re sure that they’ll choose to not give in to threats like these. Although shelling out $50 million might just be easy for a big company like Apple, attacks on Intellectual property should never be entertained.
Perhaps REvil is trying to get back all those extra bucks Apple is earning from selling separate chargers.
