Table of Contents
The operators behind the Lornenz ransomware operation have been observed exploiting a now-patched critical security flaw in Mitel MiVoice Connect to obtain a foothold into target environments for follow-on malicious activities.
"Initial malicious activity originated from a Mitel appliance sitting on the network perimeter," researchers from cybersecurity firm Arctic Wolf said in a report published this week.
"Lorenz exploited CVE-2022-29499, a remote code execution vulnerability impacting the Mitel Service Appliance component of MiVoice Connect, to obtain a reverse shell and subsequently used Chisel as a tunneling tool to pivot into the environment."
Lorenz, like many other ransomware groups, is known for double extortion by exfiltrating data prior to encrypting systems, with the actor targeting small and medium businesses (SMBs) located in the U.S., and to a lesser extent in China and Mexico, since at least February 2021.