CBI starts probe into cyber attack on Solar Industries

 

 

The Cyber Cell of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched an investigation into the ransomware attack on Solar Industries Limited (SIL), an industrial and defence explosives manufacturer. A group of hackers, who identified themselves as BlackCat or ALPHV, creeped into SIL servers on January 21, 2023. The attackers claimed that they stole 2 terabytes of data from the company's Nagpur servers and sent four threat emails to the company after they infiltrated the servers, with links for negotiation and a 24-hour deadline.

The company immediately alerted the Computer Emergency Response Team-India (CERT-In) and the Nagpur police.

The Cyber Police Station of Nagpur registered an offence after receiving the complaint. More than 14 government agencies camped in Nagpur to evaluate the amount of data stolen by the hackers. Senior police officers suspected that international hackers were involved in the attack. As a result, the investigation was transferred to the Cyber Cell of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The special team from CBI headquarters in Delhi camped in Nagpur for almost 15 days to investigate the attack, after receiving the documents from the city police. According to sources, the CBI investigation was launched because the senior police officers observed that the ransomware attack was conducted by an international hacking group. The CBI officials are expected to investigate the attack thoroughly and identify the perpetrators behind the attack.

Last month, the State Government issued a notification regarding the investigation. The Commissioner of Police (CP), Amitesh Kumar, stated that the CBI officials from Delhi contacted the city police following the notification. The investigation is on, and the CBI has not yet released any further details of the progress in the investigation or any potential suspects.