Australian Ransomware Attack, October 27 2020

Australian media monitoring provider Isentia ransomware attack expected to cost at least $7 million

Australian Cyber Security Centre is assisting Isentia, which has ‘most government departments and large corporations’ as clients

Company Statement: Update on Cyber Security Incident 03 Nov 2020

Source: Cyberattack strikes media-monitoring company used by Australian government | The Guardian
More reports from: The Guardian.

Isentia, which boasts it has “most government departments and large corporations” as clients in Australia, told the Australian Stock Exchange on Tuesday it is “urgently investigating a cybersecurity incident” that was “disrupting services” involving its media portal – a service customers use to see media reporting on them, or issues of interest to them, and find journalists.

Isentia entered a trading halt on Friday last week before providing an update

The company said it had “cut off the unauthorised party’s entry point” and that there had been “no evidence of further activity since the incident occurred on Monday 26 October”.

Guardian Australia understands the company had been hit by a ransomware attack, meaning its systems are encrypted and an attacker will only release it once money is paid.