The Qilin cyber extortion group has claimed four Australian victims in just four days, including an accounting firm, an events management group, a defunct racing syndicate, and the Bathurst RSL.
The hackers listed Melbourne-based Creative Universe on October 22, publishing several documents as evidence of the alleged hack.
These include banking documents, employment references, confidentiality deeds, and several passports and other identity documents that appear to be linked to employees.
Creative Universe operates several brands, including Creative Innovations, Creativity Australia, and The Umbrella Foundation.
A day later, Qilin listed CDG Chartered Accounting, an arm of CDG Corporate. The affiliate behind this alleged hack, however, has not shared any documents stolen via the attack.
Qilin operates a ransomware-as-a-service operation, meaning many different affiliates effectively hire the group’s malware in return for a cut of any profits.
Neither company responded to Cyber Daily’s request for comment.
The group’s most recent Australian victim is a more challenging one – at least for the hacker’s hopes of achieving a successful payday. Qilin listed an entity known as Race Trakka on October 26, alongside several spreadsheets and documents; however, while it was once a going concern, Race Trakka cancelled its ABN in 2019 and was deregistered by ASIC in 2023.
According to the LinkedIn profile of a former employee, Race Trakka was some form of racing syndicate seeking to “establish the true odds of horses' racing success”.
In addition, Qilin also claimed to have stolen data from Bathurst RSL, which confirmed it was indeed responding to a cyber incident.
“Bathurst RSL Club is aware of claims made online by an unauthorised third party,” the club’s CEO, Peter Sargent, told Cyber Daily.
“The Club engaged specialist cyber security experts, the incident has been contained, and the Club continues to operate as normal. The investigation also confirmed that the Club’s gaming and membership management systems were not affected.”
So far in October, Qilin has claimed a total of 111 victims. Since it was first observed in 2022, the group has listed more than 2,500 organisations on its leak site, including 52 Australian organisations.
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