LockBit Ransomware Gang Admits Successfully Hacking TSMC Data, Here's The Fact

DOC TSMC

JAKARTA - The LockBit ransomware gang, originating from Russia, claims to have hacked data from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and requested a number of ransoms.

In fact, after the gang uploaded a list of the names of their new victims, including TSMC, the company immediately denied it and admitted that the real victim was one of their hardware suppliers, Kinmax Technology.

According to a TSMC spokesman, the information affected or stolen was related to the preparation and initial configuration of the server.

Although its customers' business operations and information are not disrupted, the company has stopped exchanging its data with Kinmax further according to its security protocol.

"This cybersecurity incident is being investigated involving law enforcement agencies," said a TSMC spokesman.

Kinmax specializes in network, computing cloud, storage, security, and database management. Customers besides TSMC, including HPE, Cisco, NVIDIA, Microsoft, Citrix, and VMware.

Meanwhile, on the official Kinmax website, the attacker only targets an internal engineering testing environment, which has been shut down and stolen information about how to configure and install the system.

Hackers have only gained insight into who some Kinmax subscribers are and information about the default configuration for its network on June 29, which is likely to change greatly after installation.

"No damage has occurred to customers. The company has closed the infected part, and the third-party information security team has also assessed that the remaining network environment is normal and not damaged," Kinmax said.

"At the same time, the investigation bureau has also completed the case file and has entered the criminal investigation stage," he added.

However, contrary to the hackers' statements, they said they had asked for $70 million or the equivalent of Rp1.05 trillion from TSMC. If they are not followed, they will publish the stolen data.

The hack, which was carried out by LockBit, comes just weeks after the United States Department of Justice announced it had arrested and charged a Russian citizen with allegedly multiple ransomware attacks, both in the US and around the world. This was quoted from TechCrunch and Axios, Saturday, July 1.