After many unknowns about the ransomware attack on Riot Games yesterday, the developer studio has now shared some information with the community. For example, that the attackers apparently captured the source code of the hit game League of Legends.
Player data probably not affected
Just yesterday we reported that unknown persons had penetrated the development structure of Riot Games. The attack manifested itself in particular by the fact that the developer could no longer provide patches to its box office hits League of Legends and Valorant. Regarding the attack, the studio has now officially revealed more details. On Twitter it announced that not only the source code of the game Teamfight Tactics and a platform for preventing cheating were copied as part of the attack.
On top of that, the unknown managed to create a copy of League of Legends, of all things. However, Valorant was left out of the attack. The unknown persons have also contacted the developer studio in the meantime. They are apparently demanding a hefty ransom for the source codes. Whether Riot Games will pay this is still uncertain. It is certain that the stolen codes also contain new features and modes that are still secret. But Riot Games also reassures its community in the same breath. The studio emphasizes that no player data was stolen in the course of the attack.
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Riot Games is working at full speed to clarify
Together with IT security experts, the company now seems to give everything to solve the case and to make the attackers dingfest. External consultants have probably been brought in for this purpose. In order not to lose its reputation as a secure platform, Riot Games has also reassured its fans. The studio not only wants to keep its community as transparent as possible about the developments. It also promises to investigate how the attack could have happened in the first place. They want to learn from any mistakes.
Of course, it will also have to be clarified in detail which vulnerability the attackers were able to exploit. When the attack became known, Riot Games already stated that no errors in software or hardware served as a gateway. Rather, the attackers were able to gain access by means of social engineering. In this case, the criminals tickle out passwords and other important information from people close to the company, such as employees. However, information on this will also follow at a later date.
Source code as a guide for attacks on LoL
Now the developer studio is not afraid of the fact that eventually a clone of League of Legends could come on the market. Also, the fear of revealing upcoming modes and features is certainly secondary. Rather, the attackers could now use the source code to find sensitive vulnerabilities in the structure of League of Legends. In view of the high importance of the game in the professional e-sports sector, this does have a certain aftertaste. After all, important duels with high prizes could be influenced in this way.
