Ransomware Group thegentlemen Hits: Ritz Safety
Summary
In the latest cybersecurity news, Ritz Safety — an organization based in US — has fallen victim to a ransomware attack conducted by the group thegentlemen. This data breach, discovered on 2026-09-07T21:52:05.075203+00:00, underscores the increasing need for proactive cybersecurity defenses as we continue through 2026.
Incident Report
| Attribute | Information |
|---|---|
| Target Organization | Ritz Safety |
| Threat Group | thegentlemen |
| Summary | ritzsafety.com zoominfo.com/c/ritz-safety-llc/82166398 Ritz Safety Americas largest privately-held PPE & safety equipment distributors — founded in 1983 in Pompano Beach, Florida by Emily Ritz and her son Peter Merkl, selling work boots and gloves from a truck, now HQ’d in Dayton, Ohio with ~220–250 employees and 17–18 locations nationwide. Hidden twist: in 2006 the family’s uniform-rental empire Van Dyne Crotty was sold to Cintas — but the brothers Dan and Bob Crotty kept Ritz Safety out of the deal and built it into a roll-up consolidator: 9 acquisitions (2015–2022), 5,000+ customers monthly, access to 200,000+ SKUs, private-label lines, equipment rental/repair, custom embroidery and free on-site safety training. Revenue: $100–150M (2025: +12% = +$20M growth, best Q2 in the company’s 42-year history), 100% family-owned (Crotty family), no PE. Bottom line: a family dynasty that lost its parent empire to Cintas but turned the “leftover” safety distributor into a new national powerhouse |
| Date of Breach | 2026-09-07T15:47:28+00:00 |
| Discovery Date | 2026-09-07T21:52:05.075203+00:00 |
| Region | US |
| Target Domain | ritzsafety.com |
| Business Sector | Manufacturing |
How to reduce your ransomware risk
Most ransomware intrusions start with a stolen password or a phishing email. A few proactive steps sharply cut your exposure:
- monitor the dark web for leaked logins — close the gap attackers exploit.
- continuous breach monitoring — close the gap attackers exploit.
Want to know if you’re already exposed? Run a free scan with the HookPhish data breach checker.
Disclaimer
HookPhish does not engage in the exfiltration, downloading, taking, hosting, viewing, reposting, or disclosure of any stolen information. All breach data reported here is sourced from publicly available threat intelligence feeds for awareness purposes only.
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