Cautious Welcome for Ransomware Task Force Proposals

Security experts have welcomed the proposals of a new ransomware report from big tech and law enforcers, but argued that tackling the menace must begin with improved cyber-hygiene.

Convened by the Institute for Security and Technology and trailed since last December, the Ransomware Task Force (RTF) is a team of over 60 experts from software companies, cybersecurity vendors, government agencies, non-profits, and academic institutions.

It includes representatives from the FBI, Europol, the UK’s National Crime Agency and many of the world’s biggest tech companies including Amazon, Cisco and Microsoft.

Its framework document makes five key recommendations to tackle the cyber-threat. The most eye-catching of these is that governments require cryptocurrency exchanges, crypto kiosks, and over-the-counter (OTC) trading 'desks' to adhere to the same regulatory standards as banks. That means following anti-money laundering (AML), Know Your Customer (KYC) and Combatting Financing of Terrorism (CFT) laws.

Other recommendations include that the US government “execute a sustained, aggressive, whole of government, intelligence-driven anti-ransomware campaign, coordinated by the White House.”

It emerged last week that a new Department of Justice taskforce will work to manage efforts across the federal government to disrupt C&C infrastructure, seize profits, coordinate training and intelligence sharing and more to try and disrupt ransomware groups.

The RTF also called for prioritized law enforcement efforts across jurisdictions and "a clear, accessible, and broadly adopted” international framework to help organizations prepare for, and respond to, ransomwar ..

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