Italian Beverage Maker Campari Group Hit with Ransomware Attack

A ransomware attack hit famous Italian beverage company Campari Group on Sunday, November 1st, resulting in a massive shutdown of its IT network and allegedly 2TB of stolen files. The hackers who orchestrated the onslaught are part of the RagnarLocker ransomware gang, according to a copy of the ransom note that malware researcher Pancak3 acquired and shared with ZDNet. To retrieve the breached data, the cybercrime group has demanded $15 million in bitcoin. Otherwise, they will publish and/or sell the documents “through an auction to any third parties” if the company doesn’t pay within a week of the attack.

Campari Group revealed the news in a press release, saying they were the subject of a malware attack. “The Group’s IT department, with the support of IT security experts, immediately took action to limit the spread of malware in data and systems,” the statement added. Moreover, the company doesn’t expect any significant impact of financial repercussions caused by the incident. Campari hasn’t contacted RagnarLocker yet, opting to restore their files through backups instead. However, its websites, phone lines, and email servers were still down five days after the ransomware attacks.

The RagnarLocker gang released screenshots of Campari Group’s corporate documents and internal networks on the dark web as proof that the hack was successful. The published stolen data includes employee tax returns, bank statements, and a copy of the partnership with US actor Mathew McConaughey for the Wild Turkey bourbon brand. Campari owns several other popular alcohol brands like SKYY vodka, Grand Marnier, Frangelico, and Epsilon. After Arizona Beverages, it is the second major beverage vendor to fall victim to a ransomware attack in the past two years. RagnarLocker has claimed other high-profile victims this year, including French shipping giant CMA CGM and Portuguese energy company Energias de Portugal (EDP).

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