A Semperis survey, covered by HIPAA Journal, finds ransomware groups increasingly threatening victims' employees and their families as the share of victims paying ransoms falls from 78% in 2024 to 69% in 2025 and 59% in 2026. Of the attacks surveyed, 37% involved threats against friends or family of staff, and 41% of respondents said they…
The Semperis 2026 Ransomware Risk Report, published on October 14, warns that ransomware operators are increasingly threatening the physical safety of CISOs, executives and other senior staff at victim organizations to force payment. The report says a quarter of ransomware campaigns now involve psychological or physical threats against em…
A Semperis annual ransomware risk report, covered by The Register, finds that 37% of ransomware attacks involved psychological or physical threats against victim staff. The survey covered 1,200 post-ransomware organizations in the first half of 2026. Respondents reported psychological intimidation (23%) and physical threats (17%), aimed a…
A still-unknown actor hacked thousands of remote-controlled refrigeration systems across hundreds of French grocery stores, spiking temperatures, spoiling food and sparking fires. The incident fits a broader trend of extortionists and other attackers going after physical systems to maximise real-world pressure on victims. Earlier examples…