Can this ransomware business be shutdown ? Currently the perpetrators have the upper hand. Technology is being used against us and law makers are slow to understand and/or respond. Of late, there has been the usual knee jerk reaction from law makers to introduce new bills for stiffer sentences and fines. Under current legislation (US), ransomware attacks are considered mere incidents of unauthorized access to a computer, and are categorized as misdemeanors. If the cyber criminals are Americans, their sentence depends on State Laws... https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/ne...ould-send-crooks-to-prison-for-up-to-6-years/ In many countries cyber criminals are well known to law enforcement. They openly flaunt their ill gotten gains. Prison sentences and fines are obviously not a deterrent. This is a 2016 article and it gives examples that shows how egregious it has become... https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/meet-the-hackers-who-drive-the-porsches-you-paid-for In light of what happened May 12, lawmakers have to deliver more effective means of dealing with cyber criminals before an entire city is held for ransom. This will be a high probability with the advent of smart cities. IoT is being embraced by city planners and the cyber criminals are perched and eager to see it implemented. Freedom is not paramount to these criminals, wealth is. It's business and it is global.
If we have learned anything, from gang wars, war on drugs and that kind of thing, the only way this will get shut down, is if people get over being click happy, do back ups etc, and stop letting themselves be held hostage. Till that happens I wouldn't bet on it being stopped.
Will they get away with the May 12 attack ? According to those who have looked at the code, these guys are probably opportunists because of the way they set up the payment scheme. Bitcoin, the payment medium through which the hackers are demanding payment, is difficult to trace, but not impossible, and the sheer scale of the attack means that law enforcement in multiple countries will be looking to see if they can follow the money back to the culprits. The Shadow Brokers themselves will probably get away with what they did unless the FSB finds them. They failed to get what they wanted in an auction and just released the stuff for free which means they are most likely not state actors. However, most security analysts believe they are Russians.
It's also the fault of the spy agencies hoarding the security exploits and that's why Microsoft is blaming them https://www.engadget.com/2017/05/14/microsoft-blasts-spy-agency-exploit-hoarding/
I started this thread to discuss what is being done about those who are extorting money from companies, governments and individuals using cyber attacks. The blame game is being discussed in other threads where the NSA and Microsoft is being held to account for their contribution. The exploits should have been better protected and MS is responsible for creating the security hole on SMB1. Here is yet another 'blame' link. The political classes can not resist ... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technolo...latest-authorities-warn-day-chaos-ransomware/ The ransomware phenomenon is all about organised crime gangs. They are close to untouchable by law enforcement. It begs the question, why. The computer hackers who are getting nabbed are usually opportunists. When 'freedom fighters' release these stolen exploits to any and all, they are not helping anyone other than the criminal parasites who regard them as useful idiots. The Shadow Brokers are not 'freedom fighters'. Chaos and money motivated them.
