Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Oct 06, 2025

Infamous DarkSide ransomware reborn as new cyber threat: reports

Infamous DarkSide ransomware reborn as new cyber threat: reports

BlackMatter says it has the 'best features' of Colonial Pipeline hackers DarkSide, plus other kinds of ransomware

A new cyber gang is in town – and tapping into the best features of ransomware used in the Colonial Pipeline attack.

That new gang, BlackMatter, is upfront about its origins, stating that it has "incorporated" the "best features" of DarkSide and two other kinds of ransomware, REvil and Lockbit, according to a statement from the BlackMatter group as noted by cybersecurity company Recorded Future.

DarkSide was identified by the U.S. government as the ransomware responsible for the Colonial Pipeline attack, which resulted in the shutdown of a major pipeline supplying fuel to the U.S. East Coast.

A man leaves a Murrphy Oil gas station as pumps are seen out of gas, Tuesday, May 11, 2021, in Kennesaw, Ga. after Colonial Pipeline halted operations because of a cyberattack.


After the attack, DarkSide posted a statement saying it was ending operations.

Enter BlackMatter, which is now active on cybercrime forums.

"They’re not advertising their ransomware, however; they are recruiting affiliates…who have access to hacked enterprise networks," according to Malwarebytes. The BlackMatter ads state that it's seeking hacked access to corporate networks in Australia, Canada, the UK and the U.S.

Other requirements for corporations they target include revenue of at least $100 million and 500-15,000 hosts in the network, Recorded Future said.

Like other successful ransomware operations, BlackMatter is run as a business, dubbed Ransomware-as-a-service or RaaS, a knockoff of legitimate business models such as SaaS or software-as-a-service.

Cybersecurity news site Bleeping Computer reported attacks are happening already.

On their own site, BlackMatter says it won’t target certain industries including hospitals, critical infrastructure, the defense industry and the government sector, according to Malwarebytes.

That’s similar to past statements from DarkSide.

"Our goal is to make money, and not creating problems for society. From today we introduce moderation and check each company that our partners want to encrypt to avoid social consequences in the future," the DarkSide group said back in May.

But there may be more practical reasons for this. "Almost as if to say that they are keenly aware of the danger that comes from pulling off internationally-recognized attacks," Malwarebytes said.

In June, the Department of Justice said that it had seized Bitcoin valued at approximately $2.3 million from the DarkSide gang. Those funds represented a ransom payment for the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
×