MEDUZA LOCKER

MITRE ATT&CK does not currently catalogue MEDUZA LOCKER, so this is our assessment of the techniques it uses, drawn from public reporting. The techniques themselves, and every "what that means" definition below, come from MITRE ATT&CK v20.0. Confidence: medium. Treat it as orientation, not attribution.

1. T1059.001 PowerShell Execution

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER executes malicious payloads via PowerShell scripts to stage ransomware operations.

   What that means: Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.

2. T1685 Disable or Modify Tools Defense Impairment

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER disables security tools like Windows Defender and EDR solutions to evade detection.

   What that means: Adversaries may disable, degrade, or tamper with security tools or applications (e.g., endpoint detection and response (EDR) tools, intrusion detection systems (IDS), antivirus, logging agents, sensors, etc.) to impair or reduce visibility of defensive capabilities.

3. T1027.013 Encrypted/Encoded File Stealth

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER encrypts victim files with symmetric encryption keys before demanding payment.

   What that means: Adversaries may encrypt or encode files to obfuscate strings, bytes, and other specific patterns to impede detection.

4. T1070.004 File Deletion Stealth

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER deletes Volume Shadow Copies and backup directories to prevent data recovery.

   What that means: Adversaries may delete files left behind by the actions of their intrusion activity.

5. T1083 File and Directory Discovery Discovery

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER uses file and directory discovery to locate critical data and backups for encryption.

   What that means: Adversaries may enumerate files and directories or may search in specific locations of a host or network share for certain information within a file system.

6. T1486 Data Encrypted for Impact Impact

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER encrypts victim files using custom ransomware binaries to hold data hostage.

   What that means: Adversaries may encrypt data on target systems or on large numbers of systems in a network to interrupt availability to system and network resources.

7. T1490 Inhibit System Recovery Impact

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER inhibits system recovery by corrupting restore points and disabling backup services.

   What that means: Adversaries may delete or remove built-in data and turn off services designed to aid in the recovery of a corrupted system to prevent recovery.

8. T1491.001 Internal Defacement Impact

   What they do: MEDUZA LOCKER performs internal defacement by appending ransom notes and altering file metadata.

   What that means: An adversary may deface systems internal to an organization in an attempt to intimidate or mislead users, thus discrediting the integrity of the systems.