Ransomware attackers up their game

Ransomware attacks are on the rise, with hackers demanding ransoms of up to $1.5 million. These attacks have significant financial and societal costs, affecting everything from city governments to small businesses. The ransomware model has evolved to exploit cryptocurrencies and proof-of-stake consensus mechanisms, which are used to validate crypto transactions. This opens up huge potential for extortion, with criminals threatening to publish or delete sensitive data unless a ransom is paid.