Cyber attack at Amazon subsidiary Ring

A cybercriminal group called Alphv, known for ransomware attacks, claims to have penetrated the system of Amazon subsidiary Ring. Ring is a company that sells smarthome and IoT security products such as surveillance cameras, and Ring is also developing an indoor drone called Ring Always Home Cam for security purposes.

Alphv claims intrusion

The hacker group Alphv has claimed on the Darknet that they successfully broke into Ring's system on Monday of this week. In their break-in claim, they simply copied and posted Ring's advertising slogans, but there is no evidence yet that the claims are true. Alphv simply says, "There is always an option for us to leak your data."

According to a report in Vice magazine, someone reportedly posted the news of the intrusion on an internal Amazon Slack channel, while adding a warning, "Do not discuss this topic. The right security teams are already involved in this."

Ring products under fire

Ring devices are widely used and an attractive target for cyberattacks, and Ring's security products have already been the target of attacks since late 2019. Cybercriminals are trading account credentials for Ring devices on underground forums, for example. Automated credential stuffing tools are also available for trying out credentials.

Strong passwords and multi-factor authentication.

Despite the recent incident, it remains important to follow basic security tips when using Ring products. A strong password and enabling multi-factor authentication are effective measures to protect against common attacks. However, it is unclear what data Alphv actually had access to at Ring. It is possible that they had access to all camera streams and photos, as implied in the wording of their announcement on the darknet. In that case, it might be necessary to temporarily take all Ring products out of service to prevent further damage.

Amazon Ring targeted

Since Amazon has a huge market power and massively promotes the security products of its Ring subsidiary, the products are widely used and an attractive target for attackers. Alphv is known for their unscrupulous approach. Recently, they published nude pictures of breast cancer patients after infiltrating a healthcare network.