National Steel City listed on Play ransomware leak site

• Ransomware group: Play
• Country: United States
• Sector: Manufacturing
• Announcement date: April 29, 2025

The Play ransomware group has listed National Steel City on its dedicated leak site, claiming to have successfully obtained sensitive data from the organization. This announcement, made on April 29, 2025, serves as a notification from the threat actors that they have targeted the company in a ransomware attack.

The claimed ransomware attack

According to the claims made by the Play group, the ransomware attack against National Steel City was conducted on March 6, 2024. The group alleges that the breach allowed them to access information specifically related to the company's commercial and residential construction operations. This indicates that the breach may impact the data associated with the firm's core business activities and client-facing projects.

The threat actors have provided a timeline for the potential release of the stolen information. The post on the leak site indicates that the data is scheduled to be published on May 3, 2025. Such countdowns are a common tactic used by ransomware groups to increase pressure on victims to meet ransom demands, a method often associated with the psychological aspects of cyber extortion.

Data types involved in the claim

The announcement by the Play group suggests that a significant variety of sensitive information has been compromised. The group claims to have obtained private and personal confidential data, which poses a high risk to the individuals involved. The stolen information is said to include a wide range of business and personal records, such as:

• Client documents
• Payroll data
• Accounting records
• Tax information
• Identification documents
• Financial data

The inclusion of such diverse data types, ranging from payroll to tax information, suggests a deep intrusion into the organization's administrative and financial systems.

About National Steel City

National Steel City is a steel manufacturing and processing company based in the United States. The organization specializes in the production of structural steel products and provides various industrial steel solutions. Given its role in the manufacturing sector, the company serves as a key player in the supply chain for construction and industrial projects.

Analysis and potential impact

The Play group, which has been active since 2022, is known for employing double-extortion tactics. In a double-extortion scenario, attackers not only encrypt the victim's data to disrupt operations but also steal sensitive information to threaten its public release. This tactic is designed to maximize leverage over the victim, as the threat of a data leak can cause significant reputational and legal damage even if the organization can restore its systems from backups.

This specific leak may pose secondary risks, such as identity theft and targeted phishing attacks, for the company's employees and clients. Because the stolen data includes identification and financial records, the individuals whose data was taken may be targeted by other malicious actors using the leaked information. Furthermore, as the company operates within the United States, the breach may lead to legal consequences under state-level data protection laws and federal regulations. The organization may be required to fulfill data breach notification obligations and inform the affected parties regarding the compromise of their information.

The closed operational style of the Play group makes it difficult for security researchers to verify the actual scope and nature of the leaked data. For organizations in the manufacturing sector, such incidents highlight the importance of robust data protection strategies. Common defensive steps to mitigate these risks include implementing multi-factor authentication, maintaining offline backups, and conducting regular security audits to identify vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by ransomware groups.