Hangzhou's Cybersecurity Breakthrough: How ChatGPT Elevated Ransomware Resolution

 

The Chinese media reported on Thursday that local police have arrested a criminal gang from Hangzhou who are using ChatGPT for program optimization to carry out ransomware attacks for the purpose of extortion. 

An organization in the Shangcheng district of Hangzhou reported the presence of ransomware on its servers on November 20. Thus the company's systems were unable to function normally as a result. The police then began to investigate. 

The attack was first reported by an unidentified company in Hangzhou, the capital of eastern Zhejiang province, which had had its systems blocked by ransomware, according to a report published by the state-run media outlet on Thursday.

According to the hackers, the 20,000 Tether stablecoin that is tied to the US dollar is the price they would charge for restoring access to the site. During the inspection, the local police extracted the Trojan program for analysis and conducted a multidimensional assessment of the virtual currency addresses used by the suspects for extortion, as well as conducting detailed inspections of the affected servers. 

It was ultimately determined that two suspects had been identified due to these actions. It was reported that two suspects were arrested in Beijing in late November and two others in Inner Mongolia in late November, and the accused were said to have "written ransomware versions, optimised the program using ChatGPT, conducted vulnerability scans, gained access to computers through infiltration, implanted ransomware, and carried out extortion" according to the report. 

Two suspects were apprehended in Hohhot, an autonomous region of Inner Mongolia, on November 30, and another two co-criminal suspects were arrested in Beijing on November 30, making a total of four suspects of the gang arrested.

A total of four suspects have been arrested for network security violations. They have all worked for large internet technology companies in the past and have obtained qualifications related to network security. Among their alleged involvement are the writing of the ransomware version, optimisation of programs using ChatGPT, vulnerability scanning, infiltration to obtain permissions, implantation of the ransomware, and extortion through ransomware. 

It is no secret that ransomware attacks are a highly dangerous and widespread hacking method that is closely related to the daily lives of internet users as well as businesses. Ransomware is a type of computer virus that is spread by hackers through email, instant messaging tools, and other means so that they can extort money from their victims by using encryption tools to encrypt files, to disrupt computer functions, as well as to reveal or delete sensitive information about them.

In the wake of this incident, China has highlighted how strictly they resisted foreign-based AI technologies, specifically ChatGPT. ChatGPT has been extremely popular worldwide, but it is not officially available in China because of this incident. In addition to banning this particular AI tool, the Chinese government is also considering extending the ban to all applications containing similar AI programs. 

As part of its efforts to develop and promote its own artificial intelligence technologies, this policy coincides with the government's efforts to develop it. It has gained over 100 million users in a very short period and is now known as Baidu's Ernie Bot, which is similar to ChatGPT in some respects. While OpenAI has spent considerable effort blocking IPs from China, Hong Kong, North Korea, Iran, and other sanctioned markets, determined users have found ways to circumvent these restrictions despite their efforts. 

Generally, they use virtual private networks. These VPNs or virtual private networks (VPNs) will enable them to connect to OpenAI's services in regions where the services are officially available. In addition to ransomware, artificial intelligence is misused in a wide variety of ways. 

Research conducted by Sophos analysts found that, although there are illicit clones of ChatGPT intended for malicious use that have been developed for the purpose of cybercrime, they have not significantly altered the landscape of cybercrime in any substantial way. Although generative AI has been gaining popularity for several years, it is now being deployed more and more in deception. 

Having highlighted the use of voice-cloning technology in scams, Hiya researchers highlight the use of this technology when perpetrators impersonate family members or government officials to defraud their targets. As well, two separate incidents have also served as further evidence that the misuse of artificial intelligence is posing significant challenges. 

A man was arrested by Gansu authorities in May for spreading fake news about a train crash using the ChatGPT app, which allows users to generate and distribute fake news instantly through the application. Six people were arrested in August in Hong Kong for forging identity documents, which ended up being used in loan scams that targeted several banks in the region, using deepfake technology in their attempt to deceive them. One of the hacker's methods for committing crimes that are closely related to the daily activities of individuals and businesses who access the Internet, is engaging in ransomware attacks.