The history of hacking ransoms and cryptocurrency

Earlier this month, hundreds of companies from the US to Sweden were entangled in the ransomware attack through Kaseya, a company that offers network infrastructure to businesses around the world.

The Kaseya hack comes on the heels of other headline-grabbing cyberattacks like the Colonial Pipeline hijacking and the JBS meat supplier hack. In each instance, criminals had the opportunity to make off with millions -- and much of the ransoms were paid in Bitcoin.

"We have to remember the primary reason for creating Bitcoin in the first place was to provide anonymity and secure, trustless and borderless transaction capabilities," says Keatron Evans, principal security researcher at Infosec Institute.

As Bitcoin grows more prominent in darknet markets around the world, cybercrooks have found a vital tool to help them move illegal assets quickly and pseudonymously. And dark markets by all accounts, darknet market marketplace the attacks are only becoming more common. 

Ransomware on the rise

Ransomware is a cybercrime that involves ransoming personal and darknet market links business data back to the owner of that data. 

First, darknet markets 2023 a criminal hacks into a private network. The hack is accomplished through various tactics, darknet market links including phishing, social engineering and preying upon users' weak passwords.

Once network access is gained, the criminal locks important files within the network using encryption. The owner can't access the files unless they pay a ransom. Nowadays, cybercriminals tend to request their ransoms in cryptocurrencies.

The FBI estimates ransomware attacks accounted for at least $144.35 million in Bitcoin ransoms from 2013 to 2019. 

These attacks are scalable and dark Market url can be highly targeted or broad, ensnaring anyone who happens to click a link or install a particular software program.