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Intel Security Scares Ransomware Script Kiddie Out of Business

Posted by samzenpus on from the get-out-while-the-gettings-good dept.

tdog17 writes: A criminal coder wrote a kit for ransomware that made it easy for others to encrypt victims' hard drives and then extort money from them in order to get the decryption keys. But when Intel Security wrote about the kit — called Tox — the author got cold feet. Now he or she is trying to sell the whole business. “Plan A was to stay quiet and hidden. It's been funny, I felt alive, more than ever, but I don't want to be a criminal. The situation is also getting too hot for me to handle, and (sorry to ruin your expectations) I'm not a team of hard core hackers. I’m just a teenager student,” the coder wrote on the Tox malware site.

12 of 117 comments (clear)

  1. Isnt' that beyond Script Kiddie? by damn_registrars · · Score: 5, Informative

    I thought Script Kiddies were defined as being people who ran scripts they downloaded off the internet that were already made for their purposes. The summary suggests this person wrote their own software. You could claim it is derived from other software, or perhaps even just a pipelined bundle of existing software, but it still sounds like it is a bit beyond just running a script.

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    1. Re:Isnt' that beyond Script Kiddie? by Aristos+Mazer · · Score: 5, Funny

      I think the term would be "script daddy", yes?

    2. Re:Isnt' that beyond Script Kiddie? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Script Kiddie means (or used to mean) someone that runs scripts they cut and pasted from somewhere without an understanding of how they work or the underlying security mechanism they exploit. Someone else did ALL or most of the work for them, they are just using it for hacking, cracking, or for fun.

      Tech people like to overuse the term script kiddie. Why? No idea. Maybe they are afraid to admit that a teenager in high school is capable of writing his/her own code that can take down a lot of systems so they down play the impact or imply anyone could have did it but the only the "script kiddie" actually did.

  2. Saturday Night Specials by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I used to build lots and lots of Saturday Night Specials and dozens of people died. It's been funny, I felt alive, more than ever, but I don't want to be a criminal. The situation is also getting too hot for me to "handle", as somebody from the police did notice all those dead people, and the way they were murdered. I'd like to sell my completely legitimate business plan now, ok?

    1. Re:Saturday Night Specials by AmiMoJo · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Incredibly a captured ISIS fighter was on the radio making pretty much that exact argument just yesterday (BBC Radio 4 PM programme IIRC).

      He claimed that he joined ISIS for the money as someone who planned and helped execute suicide bombings. He said he had been involved in 8 such bombings, but wasn't a murderer and would never kill anyone. It was the suicide bombers killing people. Therefore he shouldn't be punished too harshly. Seriously.

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  3. Dear Pukeface by fnj · · Score: 5, Insightful

    You don't want to be a criminal? Well, you ARE one, dearie. Should have thought of that. I hope you spend your entire life behind bars. It will give you time to think about your fail.

    1. Re:Dear Pukeface by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Writing ransomware is not "facilitating" it, it's writing it.

      Oh yes, please tell me about all the other "legitimate uses" this software has.

      "No, officer, I wasn't planning to burgle anyone, I always walk through this neighbourhood at 2am wearing a balaclava and carrying a crowbar and a large duffel bag."

  4. Re:No Sympathy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    And yet trying to sell the business, not abandon it.

  5. Just partner with Sourceforge by penguinoid · · Score: 4, Funny

    Partner with sourceforge, make it part of the EULA. "Not responsible for any damage caused by using this software, including possible loss of data."

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    1. Re:Just partner with Sourceforge by mwvdlee · · Score: 4, Funny

      And what do you think SourceForge would do with the scripts?
      Hijack the most popular projects and bundle them with malware?
      Oh wait...

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  6. Not much sympathy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I almost had a bit of sympathy there. A kid realising he's done wrong, wanting to get out of the business. Except that if he actually realised he'd done wrong the appropriate course of action would just be to destroy the software, remove the online presence he uses to sell it and generally just grow the hell up. Instead he's just trying to sell it on so that other people can use it.

    The only trace of sympathy I have is if he's done this in America, which locks up a greater proportion of its citizens than pretty much any other nation on earth, often for excessively long periods, and with minimal realistic chance of rehabilitation.

  7. He'll release the keys... by Viol8 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    "If nobody's going to buy the database, in one month I'm releasing the keys, and victims will have their files automatically unlocked.â

    Oh , how heart warmingly magnanimous of you! I can see how contrite and sorry you are about what you've done... well apart from still wanting some money for the DB.

    Tell you what you sorry little turd, how about you release them anyway and give these poor people their data back? @rsehole.