Bandai Namco, publisher to the critically acclaimed Elden Ring, has reportedly been targeted by a ransomware attack. According to vx-underground, the attack was initiated by ALPHV ransomware group. Vx-underground thinks of itself as the largest collection of malware source code, samples, and papers on the internet.
It wasn’t too long ago that ransomware was the bane of almost everyone’s existence with a laundry list of companies and private individuals being targeted by ransomware attacks. For the uninitiated few, ransomware is a type of malicious software that essentially locks you out of your data until you pay the “ransom” to the attacker, which will result in your data being unlocked again.
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Ransomware is a form of cyber-extortion demanding that the victims pay over a particular ransom amount to the perpetrator or they will release the encrypted data to the public, or even just delete them entirely. The problem with these attacks is that they are usually co-ordinated attacks that leave almost no digital trace making it difficult to track down the attackers and prosecute them.
Recently, Cyberpunk 2077 and The Witcher 3 developer CD Projekt RED was hit with a ransomware attack, allegedly by the ransomware group called HelloKitty. This attack caused such a problem that the developer was forced to delay an important patch to Cyberpunk 2077 at the time, and led to the company’s source code for almost all their titles being sold at auction for over $1 million each.
ALPHV ransomware group (alternatively referred to as BlackCat ransomware group) claims to have ransomed Bandai Namco.
Bandai Namco is an international video game publisher. Bandai Namco video game franchises include Ace Combat, Dark Souls, Dragon Ball*, Soulcaliber, and more. pic.twitter.com/hxZ6N2kSxl
— vx-underground (@vxunderground) July 11, 2022
Bandai Namco has yet to confirm the ransomware attack and it’s only due to ransomware group ALPHV, also known as the BlackCat ransomware group, claiming to have ransomed the Japanese publisher. Bandai Namco is also responsible for publishing the Dark Souls series of games, as well as DragonBall, Tekken and Pac-Man.
Source: vx-underground
