Maybe not such a hot idea to out his personal details in a story like this though. One of the things they (eventually) taught me in college was operational security.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/get-ransomware-hero-michael-gille...
And a Patreon as well: https://www.patreon.com/demonslay335
No idea, they ransomware.
This is part of an experiment in giving good HN submissions multiple chances at the front page. If you have any questions, let us know. And if you don't want these emails, sorry! Tell us and we won't do it again.
It often takes a few repeats for an item to get traction. There are also numerous perennial favourites which show up every few years.
HN itself has existed since 2007. Memories fade, and new souls appear. xkcd's Ten Thousand applies.
Of course, just taking the money and running is a much higher-margin business, but it relies on that established reputation-building. Maybe a good analogy is counterfeit sellers on Amazon.
Even if the ransomware is removed/disabled after payment, you are more likely to be re-targeted either by the same group or that group may resell your information to rival ransomware groups.
I'm not entirely against paying, but it's a risk calculation and you should know all of the risks.
The guy asked my hijacked friend for the equivalent of 200€ in bitcoin. I don’t see anyone spending time specifically on his case for that amount. A skilled hacker able to « target » someone could make much more money actually developing real software.
(there's also a BTC address, for the crypto-inclined)
Sorry, still bitter about Marcus Hutchins's outcome.
I find these outcomes exclusionary to those with less positive upbringings and backgrounds.
