Hackers threatened to blow up the businessman’s store, and also said they would kidnap their children.
A Russian businessman was a victim of extortion by hackers pretending to be terrorists. The cybercriminals managed to hack into an account of the victim and accessed files stored in the cloud, with access to several personal documents of the man, the hackers began to threaten and blackmail the businessman, demanding 3 bitcoins (R$ 291,000).
Regulations that aim to diminish Bitcoin Evolution anonymity aim to diminish this kind of problem, being a fight against crime and terrorism. Nevertheless, cybercriminals are constantly evolving, with some already demanding cryptomoedas with enhanced privacy and anonymity, like Monero.
According to the website KP.RU, for several days the victim was blackmailed by phone, the hackers threatened the life of the businessman and also his children. The extortion continued for days, in several ways.
When the hackers realized that the businessman was not intimidated, they called the police and said that a terrorist attack was being planned against one of the businessman’s stores.
„The police began to check the information about the bomb and contacted the victim. Then the businessman talked about the blackmail he was receiving and asked for help. The man was threatened in every possible way, they promised to kidnap his children, blow up his store and other problems if he did not pay them,“ the police told KP.RU.
Now the police are looking for the hackers and find out the circumstances of the incident.
Threats could escalate around the world
Cyber threats involving cryptomorphic requests are among the most dangerous in recent years, as they directly affect the financial well-being of victims – be they individuals or organizations.
2020 was a year when attackers innovated, as several methods failed to give hackers the expected response, they began to adopt new tactics that worked better, such as virtual terrorism.
Due to successful operations and broad media coverage this year, hackers have systematically increased the amounts required of victims. Kaspersky research predicts further growth in extortion attempts next year.
The theft of bitcoins and other cryptomites is becoming more and more attractive to hackers as many nations fall into poverty as a result of the economic crisis. With inflation rising and several currencies losing value, more people may become involved in cyber crime, leading to more chaos.
We anticipate that due to the fragility of local currencies, more people will turn to fraud that requires Bitcoin, in addition to the very theft of these cryptomorphs – the most common,“ the security firm said.