Crypto Locker Crew Ratchets Up the Ransom
Summary: The operators behind CryptoLocker began easing their own rules in early November 2013, launching a Tor-hosted "CryptoLocker Decryption Service" where victims can look up an "order number" by uploading an encrypted file. Victims still inside the 72-hour countdown pay two Bitcoins or roughly $200 via MoneyPak, while those past the deadline face a fivefold increase to 10 bitcoins, about $2,232, and lose the MoneyPak option.
Why it matters: The attackers concluded they were leaving money on the table and built a customer-service portal to collect from late payers, which tells you the ransom business is being run like a subscription operation rather than a one-off crime. Krebs also reports that many recent CryptoLocker infections started with the ZeuS or Zbot banking Trojan, so an existing banking compromise can be the delivery path for file encryption.
Read the original at Krebs on Security ↗
- Topics
- Data Breaches
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