The popular Android operating system powers more than two billion devices and cybercriminals have their fingers on the pulse, with an uptick in Android ransomware kits appearing in underground markets.
Also Sophos, a global leader in network and endpoint security, recently announced its SophosLabs 2018 Malware Forecast in which it stated that while ransomware predominately attacked Windows systems in the last six months, Android, Linux and MacOS platforms were not immune.
This report recaps ransomware and other cybersecurity trends based on data collected from Sophos customer computers worldwide from April 1 to October 3.
Android ransomware kits are selling at a premium and are expected to grow in volume and price, according to the report.
“Ransomware has become platform-agnostic. Ransomware mostly targets Windows computers, but this year, SophosLabs saw an increased amount of crypto-attacks on different devices and operating systems used by our customers worldwide,” said Dorka Palotay, SophosLabs security researcher and contributor to the ransomware analysis in the SophosLabs 2018 Malware Forecast.
More than 5,000 Android ransomware kit listings have been spotted so far this year, with the median price that is 20 times higher than the $10 median price of Windows ransomware kits, said Carbon Black’s Param Singh. And at the high-end, Carbon Black this year found 1,683 Android ransomware kits out of a total of 5,050 that cost anywhere from $250 to $850.
Earlier this year, for example, cybercriminals launched DoubleLocker ransomware for Android devices to not only lock up their data but also change their pin. One cybercriminal wanted $854 for the Locker Android ransomware kit, according to Carbon Black.
The report also tracks ransomware growth patterns, indicating that WannaCry, unleashed in May 2017, was the number one ransomware intercepted from customer computers, dethroning longtime ransomware leader Cerber, which first appeared in early 2016. WannaCry accounted for 45.3 percent of all ransomware tracked through SophosLabs with Cerber accounting for 44.2 percent.
