IdeaLab is informing people affected by the ransomware attack last October, when hackers gained access to sensitive information.
See also: Hunters International: Ransomware operation shuts down – Free decryptors
Although the organization does not specify the type of attack, the ransomware group Hunters International has claimed responsibility and leaked the stolen data on the dark web.
IdeaLab is a California-based technology incubator that has founded over 150 companies since 1996, including GoTo.com, CitySearch, eToys, Authy, Pet.net, Heliogen , and Energy Vault. As one of the longest-standing and most influential venture capital firms in the United States, it has made significant contributions to economic growth, job creation, and investment.
On October 7, 2024, IdeaLab detected suspicious activity on its network. After investigation, it was determined that malicious actors had gained unauthorized access to its systems three days earlier.
IdeaLab worked with external partners to assist in the investigation of the ransomware attack, which was completed on June 26 of this year. The results confirmed that data had been stolen from its systems, affecting current and former employees, current and former external support service providers, and their dependents.
In the template notification shared with the relevant authorities, IdeaLab did not detail the data exposed, only noting that the hackers gained access to names in combination with various other types of information.
See also: Former ransomware negotiator accused of collaborating with hackers
On October 23, 2024, possibly after a failed extortion attempt, the Hunters International released the stolen data from IdeaLab. The leak includes 137,000 files, totaling 262.8 GB. The download link is currently down, but it is likely that many malicious users had already downloaded the files earlier.
Earlier, the perpetrators announced the closure of Hunters International and deleted all related listings and files from the extortion platform. The hackers offered free decryption tools to all their victims.
However, this may be part of an effort to rebrand themselves, as, according to researchers at cybersecurity firm Group-IB, since April the perpetrators have launched a new extortion campaign called World Leaks.
To protect against the risks arising from the incident, recipients of the notification can take advantage of free credit profile protection, identity theft prevention and dark web monitoring services for 24 months, through the IDX platform. Affected individuals have until October 1 to sign up.
See also: Swiss government data stolen via ransomware
The ransomware attack on IdeaLab highlights once again how vulnerable even the most established and innovative businesses remain to cyber threats. Despite security measures and external collaborations for investigation, hackers managed to extract sensitive data from thousands of people and leak it onto the dark web.
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Source: bleepingcomputer
