Halliburton, one of the world’s largest energy companies, has confirmed a significant cybersecurity breach. Unauthorised intruders accessed and exfiltered critical information following a cyberattack detected last week. Researchers suspect RansomHub’s involvement in the attack, although the company remains quiet about the perpetrator.
The company is now scrambling to assess the full extent of the damage and to determine the implications for its business and stakeholders.
In a brief statement filed with government regulators on Tuesday, Halliburton revealed that it still evaluates the nature and scope of the data compromised during the breach. The company is also assessing the regulatory requirements for notifying affected parties, a process that could unfold as more information comes to light.
“Halliburton is working diligently to identify the effects of the incident on our ongoing operations,” stated the company while confirming that some systems were taken offline as a precautionary measure following the attack.
However, much of Halliburton’s public-facing infrastructure remains inaccessible as the investigation continues, reports TechCrunch.
Despite repeated inquiries, Halliburton has remained tight-lipped about the specifics of the breach. Amina Rivera, a spokesperson for the company, declined to elaborate on the type of data that was stolen, stating, “We are not commenting beyond what was included in our filing.”
While Halliburton has not officially linked the attack to ransomware, there are indications that a ransomware group may be involved. TechCrunch has reported viewing a ransom note allegedly connected to the Halliburton breach, with the notorious ransomware gang RansomHub taking credit for the attack.
The note claims that the group has encrypted and exfiltrated Halliburton’s data, a tactic commonly used by ransomware gangs to coerce their victims into paying substantial ransom.
Interestingly, RansomHub’s dark web forum, typically used to publish stolen data as leverage during ransom negotiations, has not yet listed Halliburton among its victims. This could suggest that negotiations are ongoing or that the gang is strategically withholding data publication.
Halliburton is among the world’s top hydrocarbon players, and any significant damage to the company’s data or infrastructure could have a global impact.
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