MathWorks Ransomware Attack: When Critical Scientific Infrastructure Becomes the Target

The digital age has fundamentally transformed how we conduct research, engineering, and scientific discovery. When these essential systems come under attack, the ripple effects extend far beyond a single company’s walls. On May 18, 2025, MathWorks—the Massachusetts-based developer behind the widely-used MATLAB computational platform—fell victim to a sophisticated ransomware attack that disrupted services for over 5 million users worldwide.

Description of the Attack

MathWorks experienced a ransomware attack that began on Sunday, May 18, 2025, affecting both customer-facing applications and internal IT systems. The attack impacted multiple web and mobile applications, licensing services, downloads, online store, website, wiki, MathWorks accounts, and other critical services. The company, known for developing MATLAB and Simulink—platforms used by over 100,000 organizations globally—initially reported issues as “multiple applications” experiencing problems before confirming the ransomware attack a week later.

The incident affected online applications used by customers and certain internal systems used by staff, with many services becoming unavailable beginning on Sunday, May 18. Academic institutions, automotive companies, aerospace industries, and biomedical research facilities all reported significant workflow disruptions as their teams couldn’t access critical computational resources.

Severity Assessment: Critical

This attack represents a high-severity incident for several reasons. First, MATLAB serves as critical infrastructure for scientific research and industrial applications across multiple sectors. The software is used by more than five million users worldwide, including 6,500 colleges and universities. When these systems go down, research projects halt, engineering workflows stop, and innovation across entire industries slows to a crawl.

The attack’s duration amplifies its severity. Despite MathWorks’ ongoing recovery efforts with cybersecurity experts, many systems remained offline or degraded for over a week. Even after restoration efforts, some customers continued experiencing issues preventing them from creating new accounts, while others who hadn’t signed in since October 11, 2024, couldn’t log in at all.

Exploitation Methods

While the specific ransomware variant remains unidentified, initial forensic analysis suggests the attackers exploited a combination of phishing vectors and unpatched vulnerabilities in third-party software integrated into MathWorks’ systems. This multi-vector approach is increasingly common among sophisticated threat actors who combine social engineering with technical exploitation to maximize their chances of success.

The attack’s impact pattern suggests the ransomware spread laterally through MathWorks’ network, encrypting both customer-facing systems and internal infrastructure. The simultaneous failure of licensing systems, authentication services, and cloud platforms indicates a well-coordinated attack designed to maximize disruption and pressure for ransom payment.

Attribution: Unknown but Sophisticated

No ransomware gang has claimed the breach, suggesting that MathWorks has either paid the ransom demanded by the attackers or is still negotiating. The lack of public attribution by known ransomware-as-a-service groups is noteworthy, as these organizations typically seek publicity for successful attacks against high-profile targets.

Federal investigators are analyzing blockchain transactions linked to the ransomware operators’ wallets, which reportedly received payments from three Fortune 500 companies in prior attacks. This suggests the threat actors behind the MathWorks attack are experienced operators with a track record of successful enterprise compromises.

Organizations at Risk

Any organization relying on cloud-based or internet-connected software platforms faces similar risks. However, certain sectors are particularly vulnerable:

• Academic Institutions: Universities and research facilities that depend on computational platforms for research face significant disruption when these services become unavailable. The attack demonstrated how ransomware can effectively halt scientific progress across multiple disciplines.
• Engineering and Manufacturing Companies: Organizations using MATLAB for control system design, simulation, and hardware-in-the-loop testing experienced immediate workflow interruptions. The automotive and aerospace industries were particularly affected.
• Software-as-a-Service Providers: Companies offering cloud-based technical or scientific software face unique risks, as attacks on their infrastructure can impact thousands of downstream customers simultaneously.
• Organizations with Complex Software Supply Chains: The apparent exploitation of third-party software vulnerabilities highlights risks faced by any organization integrating multiple software solutions without comprehensive security oversight.

Remediation and Recovery

MathWorks has notified federal law enforcement and is working with cybersecurity experts to restore services. The company restored multi-factor authentication and account SSO on May 21st, and many systems have been brought back online gradually.

The company enlisted cybersecurity firms CrowdStrike and Mandiant to conduct network sweeps, decrypt affected systems, and implement zero-trust architecture to prevent recurrence. A temporary licensing system has been deployed to allow offline activation of MATLAB, ensuring users without cloud access can continue work.

Key remediation steps for organizations include:

• Implementing robust backup and recovery procedures that are tested regularly and stored offline
• Deploying advanced endpoint detection and response solutions
• Conducting regular vulnerability assessments of all software components, including third-party integrations
• Establishing incident response plans that include communication protocols for customer notification
• Training employees to recognize and respond to phishing attempts
• Implementing network segmentation to limit lateral movement during attacks

 How CinchOps Can Help

At CinchOps, we understand that ransomware attacks like the one that struck MathWorks represent an existential threat to businesses of all sizes. Our comprehensive cybersecurity approach is designed to prevent these attacks before they occur and minimize impact if prevention fails.

• Advanced Threat Detection and Response: Our managed security services provide 24/7 monitoring with AI-powered threat detection that identifies ransomware signatures and suspicious network behavior before encryption begins
• Vulnerability Management: We conduct regular assessments of your software environment, including third-party applications and integrations, to identify and remediate security gaps that attackers commonly exploit
• Backup and Recovery Solutions: Our managed backup services ensure your critical data is securely stored offline and can be rapidly restored in the event of a ransomware attack, eliminating the pressure to pay ransoms
• Employee Security Training: We provide comprehensive cybersecurity awareness training that teaches your team to recognize phishing attempts and social engineering tactics used to initiate ransomware attacks
• Network Segmentation and Zero-Trust Architecture: Our security experts design and implement network architectures that limit the spread of ransomware and other malware through your infrastructure
• Incident Response Planning: We help develop and test incident response procedures so your organization can respond quickly and effectively if an attack occurs, minimizing downtime and business impact

Don’t wait for a ransomware attack to expose vulnerabilities in your organization’s cybersecurity posture. Contact CinchOps today to schedule a comprehensive security assessment and learn how our managed cybersecurity services can protect your business from the same threats that disrupted operations for millions of MathWorks users worldwide.

 Discover More 

Discover more about our enterprise-grade and business protecting cybersecurity services: CinchOps Cybersecurity
Discover related topics: Silent Ransom Group: FBI Issues Critical Warning for Law Firms Under Siege
For Additional Information on this topic: MATLAB Maker MathWorks Recovering From Ransomware Attack

FREE CYBERSECURITY ASSESSMENT