International law firm Seyfarth Shaw LLP has shut down many of its systems after being hit with a ransomware attack.
Founded in 1945 in Chicago, Illinois, Seyfarth has over 900 lawyers across 17 offices, providing clients all around the world with advisory, litigation, and transactional legal services. The Am Law 100 firm serves more than 300 of the Fortune 500 companies.
Over the weekend, the company fell victim to a ransomware attack that spread aggressively across its network and forced it to shut down its email service and other systems.
The firm says it was able to stop the attack soon after detection, but not before data on many systems was encrypted by the malware.
“On Saturday, October 10, 2020, Seyfarth was the victim of a sophisticated and aggressive malware attack that appears to be ransomware. […] many of our systems were encrypted, and we have shut them down as a precautionary measure,” Seyfarth announced.
The company claims that this appears to have been a coordinated attack targeting multiple entities at the same time.
“We understand that a number of other entities were simultaneously hit with this same attack. Our monitoring systems detected the unauthorized activity, and our IT team acted quickly to prevent its spread and protect our systems,” the law firm says.
Seyfarth also notes that it found no evidence that client or firm data was accessed or exfiltrated, but many recent ransomware attacks have resulted in sensitive information being stolen to convince the victim to pay the ransom.
As its email service remains inaccessible at the moment, the company advises clients to contact it via phone. An online contact form is also available.
“Our clients remain our top priority, and we will continue to do everything necessary to protect their confidential information and continue to serve them. We are coordinating with the FBI and are working around the clock to bring our systems back online as quickly and safely as possible,” Seyfarth continues.
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