Vietnam Could Plunge Into Darkness As Blackcat Seizes Subsidiary Energy Company
The Ho Chi Minh City Energy Company, a subsidiary of Vietnam Electricity, is reportedly under threat from the BlackCat ransomware faction, sparking concerns about a potential data breach.
Hacker group ALPHV has issued a warning to report the incident to the Vietnam Department of Energy, and 84 samples from the Vietnam Electricity data breach have emerged on the dark web. Vietnam Electricity, also known as EVN, holds the position of the largest power company in Vietnam, contributing 58% to the national power generation system.
Despite the seriousness of the allegations, there are currently no immediate signs of a cyber attack on EVN’s operational website. The situation is exacerbated by the threat actor’s intention to report the incident to the Vietnam Department of Energy.
The BlackCat ransomware group, previously associated with the QSI Banking Cyberattack, has a track record of involvement in cybersecurity incidents.
The ALPHV/BlackCat group has publicly declared plans to target social media platforms, specifically mentioning potential blackmail attempts on Roblox and Twitch. This ominous announcement raises concerns about the likelihood of another platform, X (formerly Twitter), falling victim to this hacking spree.
Blackcat Attacks Roblox and Twitch
The ransomware group claimed on Sunday that they remained present, undetected, in multiple Tipali systems since September 8th, 2023. They added that they exfiltrated over 265GB of confidential business data belonging to the company, as well as its employees and clients.
The hackers revealed that they had insiders for this exploit. Although this is not an uncommon event, threat actors don’t often discuss it candidly. Additionally, the revelation was more like an attempt to damage the company’s reputation given that they used many companies as collateral. This is in stark contrast to the company’s official statement provided to the Israeli media outlet Calcalist.
By extension, the hack affected Tipali’s clients. Roblox and Twitch were on the list.
