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Gangs Extort Companies With DDoS Attacks

Posted by timothy on from the crisis-of-the-week dept.

Pcol writes "The Financial Times reports that gangs based in Eastern Europe have been launching attacks on corporate networks costing the companies millions of dollars in lost business and exposing them to blackmail. Sites have been asked to pay up to ensure they are free from Distributed Denial of Service attacks for a year. One detective reported, 'If the demand comes in for $40,000-50,000, compared to the losses they're suffering, there's an attraction for the companies to pay and hope it goes away. But there's nothing to say it will go away.'"

8 of 423 comments (clear)

  1. A new financing model... by waytoomuchcoffee · · Score: 5, Funny

    For /.?

    1. Re:A new financing model... by metlin · · Score: 4, Funny

      Sure.

      But just that with all the story repeats, they might just forget that they'd been paid not to do that again.

      You know, that might actually prevent them from posting repeats though ;-)

    2. Re:A new financing model... by blair1q · · Score: 4, Funny

      Turn it around. /. should offer to block access from a company network.

      The productivity gains would be enormous.

  2. Internet Mafia by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    So now there's an internet mafia.

    So who's the god father? I vote Al Gore.

  3. A new financing model for /.? by canfirman · · Score: 5, Funny

    Nah, a new financing model for SCO.

    --
    It is not our abilities that show what we truly are... it is our choices.
  4. Quick! Someone call SCO! by Our+Man+In+Redmond · · Score: 4, Funny

    Surely this is a violation of their IP in regards to extorting money using online means!

    --
    Someone you trust is one of us.
  5. Re:This isn't surprising... by signe · · Score: 4, Funny

    Secondly, How is this different from some company installing spyware/nagware that's not uninstallable and then sending you email asking you to pay 20 bucks for a utility that'll "remove" their piece of software.

    Easy. Asking for money to not attack someone's servers is extortion. Your example is an "innovative business model".

    -Todd

    --
    "The details of my life are quite inconsequential..."
  6. Why do I Keep Getting Left Out? by coupland · · Score: 4, Funny

    Fifteen years ago all the cool kids would make fun of me and call me a computer geek and never pick me for the baseball team and stuff. Now all the cool geeks are going off forming gangs and taking down servers and I'm still left out! I can't figure this world out...