'The detection surface is significantly reduced': Sophos report warns new "WantToCry" ransomware could pose a major risk to your business, here's what we know

• Sophos identified a new ransomware variant called WantToCry that encrypts files remotely after exfiltration, reducing detection opportunities
• The attackers exploit exposed SMB services with weak credentials, then overwrite victim files with encrypted versions
• Ransom demands are unusually low, between $600 and $1,800, reflecting limited scope and lack of broad network impact

Security researchers Sophos observed a new ransomware variant called WantToCry which, thanks to its encryption mechanism, is a lot more difficult to spot than traditional encryptors.

In an in-depth analysis, Sophos said the attackers would first use scanners such as Shodan or Censys to look for internet-connected devices using the Server Message Block (SMB) service.

SMB is a network file-sharing protocol that lets computers access files and other resources over a local network as if they were on their own system. It is widely used in MicrosoftWindows environments to enable shared drives and network authentication, and allows...

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