From Colonial Pipeline to JBS, how ransomware gangs negotiate ransom payments
No fewer than 8 out of 10 organizations paid a ransom at least once in 2022. Despite the frequency of ransomware attacks and the large sums being paid as bailouts, the exact negotiation tactics for ransom payments rarely make the news.
In January 2021, JBS—the world’s biggest meat-processing company—announced it had paid an $11 million ransom in Bitcoin to cyber-attackers. In May of that same year, Colonial Pipeline, the largest refined-products pipeline in the U.S., suffered a severe attack that caused the company to shut down operations and freeze its IT systems; the energy giant wound up paying a $4.4 million ransom (also in Bitcoin) to restore its operations.
What was common in both events? Ransomware.
Ransomware—that is, malware built to deny a user access to data on their computer—comes in different shapes, sizes, and codes. But the end goal is the same: to cripple critical systems in exchange for a ransom.
