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The infamous Hunters International ransomware gang has announced that it’s throwing in the towel and giving its victims a free decryption key as a parting gift.
In a post to its dark web leak site on Thursday (3 July), the group announced that for an undisclosed reason, it had decided to close down.
“We, at Hunters International, wish to inform you of a significant decision regarding our operations. After careful consideration and in light of recent developments, we have decided to close the Hunters International project,” the group said.
“This decision was not made lightly, and we recognize the impact it has on the organizations we have interacted with.”
While the group did not disclose the “recent developments” that led to the shutdown, it previously announced its shutdown late last year, saying that it was getting too much law enforcement attention.
The group has now also announced that it will release free decryptors for its victims to assist them in recovering their encrypted data.
“As a gesture of goodwill and to assist those affected by our previous activities, we are offering free decryption software to all companies that have been impacted by our ransomware,” the group added.
“Our goal is to ensure that you can recover your encrypted data without the burden of paying ransoms.”
While it appears that Hunters International may be over, the group appears to be rebranding.
On 1 January 2025, Hunters International announced “World Leaks”, a new extortion-only operation.
“From the administrator’s perspective, ransomware is no longer profitable and risky. The criminals collaborating with the group will be provided with a purportedly self-developed exfiltration tool designed to automate the process of data exfiltration in the victims’ networks,” Group-IB said in April, as seen by BleepingComputer.
“Unlike Hunters International, which combined encryption with extortion, World Leaks operates as an extortion-only group using a custom-built exfiltration tool.”
Hunters International’s rebrand may set a trend among ransomware groups as increased global activity against these cyber criminals damages the ransomware ecosystem and its profitability.
Group-IB said legislation introduced by nations around the globe, including the Australian Parliament and the US Congress, as well as some areas banning ransomware, have “significantly impacted the underground economy of RaaS operations, forcing affiliates and operators to find new strategies to attack and extort their victims”.
That being said, the search for affiliates by these ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) operators has increased dramatically, with 44 per cent more offers for affiliates than in 2023.
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