Quote:So far, Kia Motors America has publicly acknowledged an “extended system outage,” but ransomware gang DoppelPaymer claimed it has locked down the company’s files in a cyberattack that includes a $20 million ransom demand.
 
That $20 million will gain Kia a decryptor and a guarantee to not to publish sensitive data bits on the gang’s leak site.
 
The ransom note from DoppelPaymer, first published by BleepingComputer, said the attack was on Hyundai Motor America, the parent company of Kia Motors America, based in Irvine, Calif. It went on to say that the company has two to three weeks to pay up 404 Bitcoins, which is around $20 million as of this writing. To add a sense of urgency, the threat actors warn that a delay in payment could result in the ransom being raised to $30 million.
 
The outage affected Kia’s mobile apps like Kia Access with UVO Link, UVO eServices and Kia Connect, as well as self-help portals and customer support, the company told the outlet in a statement, adding, “We are also aware of online speculation that Kia is subject to a ‘ransomware” attack. At this time, we can confirm that we have no evidence that Kia or any Kia data is subject to a ‘ransomware’ attack.”
 
Kia told Threatpost that the UVO app and owner’s portal are now operational and added that there’s still have no evidence of a ransomware attack.