Employee info along with project details were stolen during the hack
Insomniac Games, the developer of Spider-Man 2 and Marvel’s Wolverine has reportedly been hacked by a ransomware group looking to auction off the data. Rhysida, the notorious group, is holding an auction on its website for 50 bitcoin, or $2 million. Sony Interactive Entertainment, the company that owns Insomniac Games, is investigating the reported hack. The breach was first reported by CyberDaily, a cybersecurity news website.
“We are aware of reports that Insomniac Games has been the victim of a cyber security attack,” an SIE representative reportedly said. “We are currently investigating this situation. We have no reason to believe that any other SIE or Sony divisions have been impacted.”
Rhysida allegedly posted a screenshot collage on its website as proof of the breach. Emails between Insomniac staff, employment documents, screenshots of Marvel’s Wolverine, and passports or other government documents for former and current Insomniac Games staff, including Spider-Man 2 voice actor Yuri Lowenthal, appear to have been published.
In November, the US Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued a warning about Rhysida. The group has claimed responsibility for attacks on healthcare companies as well as the British Library hack. Since May 2023, Rhysida has been targeting “education, healthcare, manufacturing, information technology, and government sectors,” according to the CISA.
Because of the type of information stolen, this is a serious attack that affects both Insomniac Games employees and business operations. In September 2022, London police arrested two teenagers who hacked Rockstar Games, the publisher of Grand Theft Auto 5, and leaked development footage for the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6. Both teens were found guilty on multiple counts of fraud, hacking, and blackmail.