The Victoria Racing Club has been hit by a ransomware attack, with the Medusa group claiming credit for gaining access to the organization's network on June 13.
See also: Florida company hit by Medusa ransomware attack
Thirty documents from the club have been published online ,with the ransomware group indicating that it would wait another five days before taking any further action.
The Medusa group claims to have stolen 128.1GB of data from the club and is demanding $700,000 to either delete the data or download it.
The VRC has acknowledged the breach, with CEO Steve Rosich saying in a statement: “We are currently reaching out to our employees, members, partners and sponsors to inform them that the VRC recently experienced a cyber incident.”
«Once we identified the incident, we took immediate action to contain it and engaged leading experts to assist in our response and investigation».
See also: Medusa Ransomware: Targeted Traverse City Schools
The 160-year-old VRC operates race days at Flemington and has more than 30,000 members.
According to security group Palo Alto Networks, Medusa “will provide victims with multiple options when their data is published on the leak site, such as extending the time, deleting data, or downloading all data. All of these options have a price depending on the organization affected.”
Like almost all other ransomware, Medusa only attacks the operating system .
Rosich added: “We are notifying employees, members, partners and sponsors of the incident to encourage them to be vigilant and remain alert for fraud while our investigation is ongoing.”
“We will contact you directly if our investigation identifies evidence that personal data has been affected.“
See also: Medusa ransomware: Gang adds two companies to its victims
A ransomware attack, such as the Medusa attack on the Victoria Racing Club, is a type of malware that encrypts a victim’s data, making it inaccessible until a ransom is paid. These attacks often begin with phishing emails , malicious downloads, or the exploitation of network vulnerabilities. Once deployed, ransomware typically locks down critical files and systems, demanding payment, often in cryptocurrency, to decrypt the data. Such attacks can cause significant financial loss, operational disruption, and reputational damage to individuals and organizations. The best defenses against ransomware include regular data backups , up-to-date security protocols , and ongoing employee training to recognize potential threats.
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Source: itwire
