Hackers obtained and released data from the Berlin Senate after an ultimatum went unmet
The Rhysida hacker group published nearly 6 terabytes of data from the Berlin Senate online after German authorities refused to comply with the cybercriminals’ demand for a ransom.
A data package totaling approximately 5.8 TB was leaked online, which, according to German media reports, may contain a significant amount of official and critically important information.
Following a large-scale cyberattack on the Berlin Senate, the Rhysida group posted a countdown timer on its website.
The attackers demanded 30 bitcoins—approximately 2 million euros—from the German side.
The Berlin Senate officially stated that it does not intend to give in to the hackers or pay the ransom.
The countdown ended on September 4 at approximately 3:35 p.m. Shortly thereafter, Rhysida published the stolen information on the dark web.
According to available information, more than 1.4 million files and other data are currently reportedly available for viewing.
Social media users have already begun sharing lists of the names of the leaked files.
According to media reports, the attackers gained access to a wide range of official information. The stolen data may include:
- information on nearly 80,000 cases of administrative offenses;
- more than 46,500 contracts;
- data on critical infrastructure facilities;
- court documents;
- emergency response plans;
- passwords;
- nearly 6,000 files containing login credentials.
The scale of the breach is particularly concerning due to the presence of data on critical infrastructure and official documents among the stolen information.
Germany’s Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) stated that the attack was likely carried out by cybercriminals primarily motivated by financial gain.
“At this time, no connection to state-sponsored or politically motivated actors has been established,” the agency said.
Thus, Rhysida carried out its threat to publish the stolen data after the Berlin Senate refused to pay the ransom. German cybersecurity experts and law enforcement officials must determine the full extent of the leak and the potential consequences of the information’s publication.
This was reported by Der Spiegel.
Earlier, the Association of French Mayors fell victim to a large-scale cyberattack. The attacker gained access to data on more than 100,000 local government officials and municipal representatives, which may have included passwords, names, email addresses, and information about their positions.
McKesson, an American distributor of pharmaceutical products and medical supplies, confirmed unauthorized access to several of its cloud service accounts and the extraction of data. The company also warned that the incident could cause occasional service disruptions.
