A Russian cybercriminal organization claimed it hacked into the National Rifle Association and rifled through its private documents.
The Russian group, known as Grief, posted 13 screenshots of documents it had stolen, threatening to release more if not paid. The organization did not state how many records it had acquired. The files released so far were mostly related to NRA grants, including a list of recipients. The document also includes a W-9 form and minutes from a Sept. 24 NRA teleconference meeting, according to NBC.
“NRA does not discuss matters relating to its physical or electronic security,” said Andrew Arulanandam, the managing director of public affairs for the NRA, in a tweet Wednesday. “However, the NRA takes extraordinary measures to protect information regarding its members, donors, and operations — and is vigilant in doing so.”
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Grief’s practice of releasing select files before demanding pay is standard among many ransomware gangs, according to cybersecurity experts, who suspect the group is a rebranded effort by the Russian cybercriminals previously known as Evil Corp.
Evil Corp was sanctioned by the Treasury Department in 2019 for creating the Dridex malware, a piece of software that harvested login credentials to steal hundreds of millions of dollars from banks worldwide.
The group is also suspected to be behind the Sinclair Broadcast Group hack on Oct. 17, which resulted in news shows and sports programming, including NFL games, being off the air for two days across Sinclair’s 184 local TV stations in 86 markets.
The State Department is offering a $5 million reward for any information leading to the capture or conviction of the leader of Evil Corp.
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The gun advocacy group may have to ask permission from the Treasury Department if it wants to pay the ransom.
The NRA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
