Is Grief's Threat to Wipe Decryption Key Believable?

Is Grief's Threat to Wipe Decryption Key Believable?

Business Continuity Management / Disaster Recovery , Critical Infrastructure Security , Cybercrime

Analysts Say the Gang Is Escalating Rhetoric to Scare Victims Doug Olenick (DougOlenick) • September 16, 2021     (Source: Carlos Garcia Campillo)

Regarding the recent tactical innovation by the Grief ransomware gang that is threatening to wipe a victim's data and decryption key if the victim engages a ransom negotiator, analysts are calling this a desperate ploy to scare a target into paying the ransom demand.


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"If we see professional negotiator from Recovery Company. We will just destroy the data," Grief said in a statement first uncovered by Bleeping Computer.


Industry watchers believe Grief, Ragnar Locker and the other gangs that adopt this approach are trying to suggest a course of action by their victim that is beneficial to the criminal group and is a solid indicator that some of the defensive measures and actions being used by organizations now are effective.


"If a gang tells you not to seek outside help, it's because it's in their best interests that you don't. And, of course, their best interests are the exact opposite of your best interests. So ignore their threats and get help. Call in incident response professionals and call in law enforcement," says Brett Callow, a th ..

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