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Private Explosives Manufacturer Hired By Defence Ministry Hit By Suspected Ransomware Attack

A huge cause for concern is that sensitive data on the kinds of weapons the Indian Army uses—or plans to use—might fall into the “wrong hands”

The parent company of a private explosives manufacturer hired by the Ministry of Defence has suffered a ransomware attack, said a government official speaking to Hindustan Times. The government is still figuring out who attacked the company and how much data was lost. What's a ransomware attack? Ransomware is a form of malware designed to encrypt files on a device. Once it's done that, the files (and systems that rely on them) become unusable. The attacker then demands a ransom to decrypt the files. So, who was attacked? Solar Industries Limited India, a Nagpur-based company. Its subsidiary—Economic Explosives Ltd (EEL)—was hired by the Ministry of Defence in October 2020 to supply one million multi-mode hand grenades to the Indian Army. Why? To replace a World War II-era grenade design being used by the armed forces. EEL also provided "other types of ammunition" to the army. It's also involved in manufacturing the Pinaka rockets developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation. Last year, the company received orders worth ₹24,419 million, said defence analyst Mandeep Bajwa speaking to Hindustan Times. The report doesn't specify if those were all government orders. And what was attacked? We still don't really know. The official speaking to Hindustan Times didn't confirm if the data was stolen by the attackers, or if any ransom demand had been made. The paper added that the group's website was publicly inaccessible on Sunday evening—and that seems to be the case as of publishing this article too. Hindustan Times added that the "Black Cat (Alphb)" group claimed…

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