back to article Ransomware scammers: Won’t pay? We'll put your data on the internet

Ransomware-peddling cybercrooks have come up with a sinister twist to their increasingly well-worn scam – online publishing. Instead of just simply encrypting files on compromised Windows PCs, the relatively new Chimera ransomware offers victims a threat – if they don’t pay up, their data will be published online, presumably …

  1. Prst. V.Jeltz Silver badge

    interesting new twist

    on the plus side - if that happens you get your data back!

    1. This post has been deleted by its author

      1. Dave 126 Silver badge

        Re: interesting new twist

        >For example, confidential company spreadsheets could have the exact values altered, rendering them useless for accounts, but useful enough to expose the financial working of the company in question.

        That would be a lot of effort for the scammers. Even just looking through these TBs of data looking for something that *might* be embarrassing, and then somehow advertising it to a very bored internet would be a lot of effort for very little chance of reward.

        As the researchers suggest, it is mostly an idle threat meant to scare people into giving them coins. It is far, far easier to make the threat than to carry it out.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: interesting new twist

      My first thoughts exactly. Considering I have only very few things on most devices I would not like others to see (travelling internationally does that to you "why, yes, Sir, here is my phone and my laptop, no, I do not mind if you copy the data...")

      What was it somebody said (way back)? Backups are for losers, the pros let the web mirror their stuff? (along those lines, anyway).

      Changing the numbers and stuff seems like too much work, I feel this is an automated machinery...

      1. This post has been deleted by its author

    3. chivo243 Silver badge

      Re: interesting new twist

      @Prst. V.Jeltz

      My exact thoughts, beat me to the post ;-} And if you have nothing special to hide, who would want your data except you?

      Glad my data doesn't live in Winbox.

    4. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

      Re: interesting new twist

      Obviously the ability to perpetrate this stuff is moving down the IQ scale

    5. Stevie

      Re: interesting new twist

      Okay, bad idea. What if we threaten to hit ourselves on the head with rocks?

  2. Marcus Fil
    Joke

    Dear Scammers

    In your tenacity you have just uploaded a trojan from my machine - please empty your Bitcoin account into mine before I expose your dirty washing, and location, on the web.

  3. allthecoolshortnamesweretaken

    Does this imply Chimera will be targeting MPs?

  4. regadpellagru

    unsurprising

    Presumably, in the future, there will be an assertion at what is more damaging to users: stealing their files or publishing them ?

    I see nothing unusual, here, in the grand scheme of cyber-criminality: pressing people to pay, by any means ...

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    With any luck

    the perps will be found and executed. That's the best defense against future blackmail.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Why is everyone so desperate to see my dick picks!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Thumb Up

      That's what I was thinking...

    2. allthecoolshortnamesweretaken

      Well, we all heard the rumours about that thing at that place with, you know... (nudge nudge, wink wink)

  7. N2

    Hello, thank you...

    Hello good evening and welcome, to BLACKMAIL!

    Yes, it's another edition of the game in which you can play with *yourself*. And to start tonight's show, let's see our first contestant, all the way from Manchester, on the big screen please:

    MRS. BETTY TEAL! - Hello, Mrs. Teal, lovely to have you on the show. Now Mrs. Teal, if you're looking in tonight, this is for 15 pounds: and is to stop us from revealing the name of your LOVER IN BOULTON!

  8. Blinkered
    Go

    Oh Really

    I do freelance graphics and my Archived Projects as well as live take up about 10TB (all backed up on removable disks I will add). I think I'd notice the traffic going the wrong way and it would give me plenty of time to work out where the data was going....

    I hope they have a 'totally unlimited scammers package' - could cost them a lot of money otherwise.

    Bring it on.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Oh Really

      Not unless they use YOUR machine to do all the uploading. Then YOU'LL get hit with the overage bill. Did anyone consider that the ransomware could use the victim's own machine to do the uploading?

      1. d3vy

        Re: Oh Really

        Not unless they use YOUR machine to do all the uploading. Then YOU'LL get hit with the overage bill. Did anyone consider that the ransomware could use the victim's own machine to do the uploading?

        I'm guessing that was meant as a joke?

  9. channel extended
    Coat

    I wonder?

    The question to me is 'are these the M$ users that broke their cloud'. In that case Good Job!! Now we know who the NSA is really working for.

  10. Captain DaFt

    Upload away losers!

    99.9% of the people that view the data won't care who's it is, they'll just be cheering, "YAY! Free porn!"

  11. P. Lee

    Move my files to the cloud?

    Over what speed link?

    Good luck with that.

    Also... VMWare + host network share = no local files of any importance even on the "local" pc.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Move my files to the cloud?

      Many malwares can traverse networks, meaning your host share and its contents will be vulnerable, too.

  12. Stevie

    Bah!

    Which is another reason for encrypting the data in the first place.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Well..

    compromised Windows PCs

    Enough said..

    1. LucreLout
      Joke

      Re: Well..

      @Ac

      Well, sure, but if you want to compromise Linux on the desktop you can just break into both houses where it's being used and steal their hard disks.

      1. Swarthy
        Joke

        Re: Well..

        @LucreLout

        The OS/2 Jokes are over this way.

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