Lee Enterprises, one of the largest owners of local newspapers in the U.S., suffered a cyberattack in February that exposed the Social Security numbers of nearly 40,000 people. The Qilin ransomware gang took credit for the attack, claiming to have stolen 350 gigabytes of data. The attack halted print and online production of multiple newspapers, impacting distribution, billing, collections, and vendor payments. The company estimated the cost of recovery at $2 million and noted a material impact on its financial condition.
Source: https://therecord.media/newspaper-lee-enterprises-cyberattack-ssn
TPRM report: https://scoringcyber.rankiteo.com/company/leeenterprises
"id": "lee432060625",
"linkid": "leeenterprises",
"type": "Ransomware",
"date": "6/2025",
"severity": "100",
"impact": "5",
"explanation": "Attack threatening the organization's existence"{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': '39,779 people',
'industry': 'Publishing',
'location': 'Iowa, USA',
'name': 'Lee Enterprises',
'size': '350 publications, 72 markets, 25 states',
'type': 'Media Company'}],
'customer_advisories': 'Letters to victims',
'data_breach': {'data_exfiltration': '350 gigabytes of data',
'number_of_records_exposed': '39,779',
'personally_identifiable_information': 'Social Security '
'numbers',
'sensitivity_of_data': 'High',
'type_of_data_compromised': 'Social Security numbers'},
'date_detected': '2023-02-03',
'date_publicly_disclosed': '2023-05-28',
'description': 'A cyberattack on Lee Enterprises, a major owner of local '
'newspapers in the U.S., exposed the Social Security numbers '
'of nearly 40,000 people. The Qilin ransomware gang claimed '
'responsibility for the attack, which halted print and online '
'production of multiple newspapers.',
'impact': {'data_compromised': '350 gigabytes of data',
'financial_loss': '$2 million',
'operational_impact': 'Halted production of multiple newspapers',
'revenue_loss': 'Advertising revenue impacted',
'systems_affected': ['Print and online production systems',
'Critical applications',
'Distribution of products',
'Billing',
'Collections',
'Vendor payments']},
'investigation_status': 'Ongoing',
'motivation': 'Financial Gain',
'ransomware': {'data_exfiltration': '350 gigabytes of data',
'ransomware_strain': 'Qilin'},
'references': [{'source': 'Lee Enterprises'}],
'regulatory_compliance': {'regulatory_notifications': 'SEC filing'},
'response': {'law_enforcement_notified': 'FBI',
'recovery_measures': 'Free credit monitoring services for '
'victims'},
'threat_actor': 'Qilin ransomware gang',
'title': 'Cyberattack on Lee Enterprises Exposes Social Security Numbers',
'type': 'Ransomware'}