Tue. Mar 19th, 2024

Content Assessment: Classifying Ransomware? A Ransomware Classification Framework Based on File-Deletion and File-Encryption Attack Structures

Information - 90%
Insight - 90%
Relevance - 85%
Objectivity - 85%
Authority - 90%

88%

Good

A short percentage-based assessment of the qualitative benefit of the published paper on a ransomware classification framework designed to support ransomware response decisions.

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Research Report*

A Ransomware Classification Framework Based on File-Deletion and File-Encryption Attack Structures

Citation: Zimba, A., Chishimba, M. and Chihana, S., 2021. A Ransomware Classification Framework Based on File-Deletion and File-Encryption Attack Structures. [online] arXiv. Available at: <https://arxiv.org/abs/2102.10632> [Accessed 13 September 2021].

Abstract

Ransomware has emerged as an infamous malware that has not escaped a lot of myths and inaccuracies from media hype. Victims are not sure whether or not to pay a ransom demand without fully understanding the lurking consequences. In this paper, we present a ransomware classification framework based on file-deletion and file-encryption attack structures that provides a deeper comprehension of potential flaws and inadequacies exhibited in ransomware. We formulate a threat and attack model representative of a typical ransomware attack process from which we derive the ransomware categorization framework based on a proposed classification algorithm. The framework classifies the virulence of a ransomware attack to entail the overall effectiveness of potential ways of recovering the attacked data without paying the ransom demand as well as the technical prowess of the underlying attack structures. Results of the categorization, in increasing severity from CAT1 through to CAT5, show that many ransomwares exhibit flaws in their implementation of encryption and deletion attack structures which make data recovery possible without paying the ransom. The most severe categories CAT4 and CAT5 are better mitigated by exploiting encryption essentials while CAT3 can be effectively mitigated via reverse engineering. CAT1 and CAT2 are not common and are easily mitigated without any decryption essentials.

Introduction

Since the invention of the Internet, cyber-crime has continued to grow with attackers employing more innovative ways to attain proceeds of cyber-crime. Since the motivation behind most cyber-crime is monetary gain (excluding cyber espionage and hacktivism), the challenge mainly has been to seamless collect the associated monetary proceeds without a trace. The invention of Bitcoin seems to be a dream come true for cyber criminals due to the anonymity provided by the Bitcoin system. As such, attackers eschewing data exfiltration attacks for less tedious attacks with a high turnover. One such attack is ransomware where the attacker takes hostage of the victim’s data without the need to exfiltrate it at all. In a ransomware attack, the attacker uses robust and resilient encryption to make the target data inaccessible without the appropriate decryption keys. Furthermore, the attacker demands a ransom in Bitcoins and usually the victim is left with a binary option of whether to pay or not to. The popularity of ransomware is echoed by Interest Over Time (IOT) as shown in figure 1 (See Complete Paper)

This has seen some victims part away with over a million dollars in a single attack. As such, the ransomware business model is a multi-billion lucrative industry in the cyber-crime landscape which is growing each day with criminal business concepts such as Ransomware-as-a-service. Sadly, the myths and inaccuracies around ransomware continue to deepen. This has caused victims to make uninformed decisions upon a ransomware attack. Depending on the underlying attack structures, some ransomware attacks can be mitigated and the data recovered without paying the ransom. Unfortunately, some victims have had to pay ransom demands when data could be recovered without honoring the ransom demand, as was with the major ransomware attack of 2017 depicted in figure 1 (See Complete Paper). As such, knowledge of a ransomware’s attack structure is vital to the mitigation thereof. In light of the aforesaid, this paper evaluates attack methodologies of a ransomware attack: the underlying file deletion and file-encryption attack structures. In the former, we uncover the data recovery-prevention techniques and in the latter, we uncover the associated cryptographic attack models. The deeper comprehension of potential flaws and inadequacies exhibited in these attack structures form the basis of the overall objective. This enables the provision of enough technical information before making a hasty decision to pay a ransom which might result into not only financial loss but loss of access to the attacked files if decryption is not possible by the attacker. We present a threat and attack model which is representative of a typical ransomware attack process from which we derive the ransomware categorization framework based on a proposed classification algorithm. The framework classifies the virulence of a ransomware attack to entail the overall effectiveness of potential ways of recovering the attacked data without paying the ransom demand as well as the technical prowess of the underlying attack structures.

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A Ransomware Classification Framework Based on File-Deletion and File-Encryption Attack Structures

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*Shared with permission under Creative Commons – Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) – license.


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