As the threat of ransomware continues to grow, cybercrime gangs are taking a page out of the corporate America marketing playbook: branding. Similar to the corporate world, where companies merge, talent moves from established businesses to shiny new startups, or companies like Intel Security (formerly McAfee) rebrand themselves, ransomware gangs are mirroring these methods more than ever before in order to reposition themselves in the marketplace and become the cyber mafia of the 21st century. However, this trend of cybersecurity gangs or Ransomware as a Corporation (RaaC) groups rebranding themselves is not new, nor is it uncommon, especially in the current security environment.
In the past, cybercriminals were predominantly focused on out-dueling each other to build as much clout and publicity for themselves as possible. However, there was a seismic shift in 2012 when the Reveton ransomware was noted to have great success extorting victims across Europe. This was followed almost immediately by the infamous CryptoLocker ransomware that was estimated to have extorted over $3 million before it shut down. Since then, these cybercriminal groups have realized the true power of ransomware: financial gain. As such, they’re now laser focused on making as much money as possible by avoiding detection and media attention.