Cactus Ransomware Group Targets Axiom Construction

Cactus ransomware group claimed responsibility for attacking Axiom Construction and Consulting. No further information was made available. Axiom Construction is a full-service architectural sheet-metal contractor in the Pacific Northwest. Since being founded in 2002, the company has completed work in a wide array of retail, commercial, and industrial projects.

Cactus's Modus Operandi

Cactus has been in operation since at least March 2023. Cactus has been observed employing known vulnerabilities within VPN appliances to initiate an initial breach. Once gaining entry to the network, Cactus operators engage in activities such as enumerating local and network user accounts and identifying accessible endpoints. They then proceed to generate new user accounts and utilize custom scripts for the automated rollout and activation of the ransomware encryptor through scheduled tasks.

It is noteworthy that the ransomware encryptor utilized by Cactus exhibits a unique characteristic – it necessitates a decryption key for the execution of the binary, likely implemented to evade detection by anti-virus software. This decryption key is concealed within a file containing random text named ntuser.dat, which is loaded through a scheduled task.