Technology
Ransomware attacks do not always begin when a victim’s files are suddenly locked or encrypted. ITSEC Asia’s Threat Intelligence team highlights early warning signs.
Jakarta, Aktualita.co — Ransomware attacks do not always begin when a victim’s files are suddenly locked or encrypted. A number of suspicious activities can appear much earlier, ranging from credential abuse, remote access, and network mapping to the movement of attackers between devices.
These findings were revealed by PT ITSEC Asia Tbk (IDX: CYBR) through its latest whitepaper titled From Sample to Signal: Uncovering the GodDamn Ransomware Operation.
In its research, the ITSEC Asia Threat Intelligence team analyzed the GodDamn ransomware and discovered several patterns that can serve as early warning signals before the encryption process takes place.
Identified activities include suspicious executions, changes to the Registry and services, ARP scanning, SMB probing, large-scale file modifications, and the creation of ransom notes.
The analyzed samples also demonstrated processing and encryption capabilities in both Windows and Linux operating system environments.
In one of the incidents studied, the attacker was known to have performed several activities before the ransomware was executed, including using remote access, gathering credentials, performing network discovery, and executing lateral movement or moving from one system to another within the network.
At least 10 hosts were reported to have been affected before the ransomware deployment phase began.
President Director of ITSEC Asia, Patrick Dannacher, stated that ransomware attacks should be viewed as a staged intrusion process, rather than just malware that encrypts data.
“Ransomware is often only noticed when files are already encrypted and operations begin to be disrupted. In reality, before that, the attacker may have already gained access, collected credentials, and moved within the network. Therefore, the ability to detect unusual activity from the early stages is crucial,” said Patrick in a written statement, Tuesday (9/29/2026).
The research also noted reports regarding the use of PoisonX, a malicious kernel driver that can reportedly be used to disrupt security software processes before the encryption stage occurs.
However, ITSEC Asia placed the findings regarding PoisonX in the Reported category because the information originated from external investigations and was not independently reverse-engineered in the research conducted by its team.
Distinguishing Observed, Reported, and Assessed Findings
In the whitepaper, ITSEC Asia divides its research findings into three categories: Observed, Reported, and Assessed.
This approach is used to distinguish between evidence observed directly, information originating from third-party reports, and assessment results based on available analysis.
The method is also intended to ensure that findings from a single malware sample, a single attack case, or an external report are not automatically assumed to represent the entire pattern of ransomware operations.
Based on the research results, organizations are advised to strengthen their behavioral detection systems while increasing visibility into endpoint and network activities.
Protection for backup infrastructure and data recovery is also considered important because backup systems can be a target in ransomware attacks.
Corporate security teams need to be vigilant against activities such as unusual remote access, SMB probing, lateral movement, large-scale file changes, and attempts to disable or disrupt endpoint security systems.
Patrick said that data correlation from several monitoring points can help organizations detect attacks before the attacker reaches more critical systems.
“The faster an organization can connect signals from identities, endpoints, and the network, the greater the chance to stop an attack before it reaches more critical systems. The focus of defense needs to shift from merely looking for malware indicators to understanding the behaviors that emerge throughout the attack chain,” he said.
The whitepaper From Sample to Signal: Uncovering the GodDamn Ransomware Operation was compiled based on technical evidence and information available during the research period up to August 10, 2026.
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