Bombay High Court Grants Relief to Generali After Ransomware Attack by ‘Medusa’ Group
The Bombay High Court has granted urgent ad-interim relief to Generali Central Life Insurance Company Limited after it suffered a ransomware attack allegedly carried out by a hacker group calling itself “Medusa.”
On October 16, Justice Arif S Doctor directed the Union of India, through the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and other authorities, to immediately block and disable all accounts, domain names, and communication channels linked to the cyberattack.
The Court observed that the consequences of the company’s confidential data being made public or traded would be extremely serious and that the balance of convenience favoured Generali.
Generali informed the Court that its confidential and customer data had been stolen, and the hacker had demanded $500,000 as ransom. The threat was posted on X (formerly Twitter), warning that the data would be available to anyone willing to pay unless the demand was met.
A screenshot produced before the Court revealed three ransom options:
- Add time (1 day) – $10,000
- Delete all data – $500,000
- Download all data – $500,000
Since the hacker’s identity was unknown, Generali impleaded the perpetrator as “John Doe.” The company sought an immediate injunction to restrain the hacker from publishing, distributing, or selling its stolen data.
The Court restrained the Medusa group and all persons acting on its behalf from using, copying, transmitting, or disclosing Generali’s confidential information on any platform or medium.
It further directed the DoT and related authorities to:
- Remove, block, and disable any accounts, domains, phone numbers, or email IDs linked to the stolen data;
- Act within 24 hours of receiving information from Generali about any further misuse; and
- File a compliance affidavit before the Court confirming the steps taken.
Generali also relied on a previous Bombay High Court order in HDFC Life Insurance Co. Ltd. v. Meta Platforms Inc., where similar reliefs were granted to prevent misuse of confidential information after a cyberattack.
The company was represented by Senior Advocate Venkatesh Dhond, along with Advocates Vishal Kanade, Aruna Roy, Devashish Godbole, and Prasad Nagargoje.
