<story><title>DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized</title><url>https://krebsonsecurity.com/2021/05/darkside-ransomware-gang-quits-after-servers-bitcoin-stash-seized/</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>bredren</author><text>It was a mistake to attack the business side of the oil company, because it created what could be sold as reasonable doubt to shut down the pipeline.&lt;p&gt;As a result, the ransom had the optics of an attack on infrastructure. As evidenced by the coverage of Americans desperately filling up containers.&lt;p&gt;This created the impetus for the US to treat this as an incident far and above the ambient ransomware activities leading up to this.&lt;p&gt;It also gave the US an opportunity to show how effective it could be when it had the political cover to do so.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>TrackerFF</author><text>I got downvoted for saying that maybe it&amp;#x27;s time to treat serious ransomware attacks (infrastructure, security, health, etc.) as terrorism - as in the sense that they&amp;#x27;re a threat to the national security. But this kinda shows the response I was referencing to.&lt;p&gt;A lot of people like to think of ransomware attacks as the ultimate stress test as far as security goes, and thus a good thing - but let&amp;#x27;s not get too blinded by our professions (most probably in tech), these kinds of attacks can have serious consequences: Imagine if some foreign state agency (masquerading as hackers) launches a multiheaded attack on, say, utilities plants - in the middle of the winter. The victims&amp;#x2F;targets will pay whatever us necessary.&lt;p&gt;With that said, I understand that many people will recoil at such things - we saw what the patriot act did, and how easy it is to overstep and abuse such laws, in the name of &amp;quot;national security&amp;quot;. But it is a serious problem, in the same way actual piracy thrived in the gulf of Aden, as soon as the shipping companies started paying.</text></comment>
<story><title>DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized</title><url>https://krebsonsecurity.com/2021/05/darkside-ransomware-gang-quits-after-servers-bitcoin-stash-seized/</url></story><parent_chain><item><author>bredren</author><text>It was a mistake to attack the business side of the oil company, because it created what could be sold as reasonable doubt to shut down the pipeline.&lt;p&gt;As a result, the ransom had the optics of an attack on infrastructure. As evidenced by the coverage of Americans desperately filling up containers.&lt;p&gt;This created the impetus for the US to treat this as an incident far and above the ambient ransomware activities leading up to this.&lt;p&gt;It also gave the US an opportunity to show how effective it could be when it had the political cover to do so.</text></item></parent_chain><comment><author>this_user</author><text>The fact that their coins were apparently easily stolen also debunks another favourite talking point of the crypto people that it secures your money from government access. Clearly, ways and means have been developed to do just that if necessary.</text></comment>