The Ransomware Hunters

The inter net has opened a Pandora's Box.  It has made many billionaires and definitely made life more pleasant for more people than almost any other invention.  We have become so dependent on it that it can upend our lives.  Some have mastered its innermost secrets, at least enough to manipulate the masses.  Using mammoth amounts of details some made fortunes analyzing, refining and developing strategies to make more profit.  Stealing information was another way to make money.  More recently another way was developed by blocking access to information and demanding a ransom to restore it.  And beyond that others could unravel blockages.

 The book starts with some people who might be called misfits as alluded to in the subtitle.  They were obsessed with what computers and the inter net allowed them to do.  They developed skills, but the time required combined with their personalities assured they were not popular.  Of course when they were able to apply their knowledge for the benefit of others they did gain a sort of popularity.

While some turned their skills to exploiting others for profit, a few loved the challenge of developing their skills further.  For some this meant stealing information for those willing to pay.  Eventually some learned they could make easy money by blocking access to computers and the internet.

Still others wanting to help enjoyed the challenge of breaking the puzzle.  Some of them found each other and worked as a team.   Initially they were sometimes able to decipher the blocking and restore the original information and save the ransom.  Sometimes they were able to determine the address of the perpetrators and if they were not in a country with no extradition they could be arrested.  

The internet has opened up the whole world and hackers are very adept at exploring internationally for opportunities as well as support.  It was thought Russian gangsters were involved at early stages.

As ransomware became more common, legal authorities became concerned and did take steps.  The F.B.I. was interested, but their setup offered limitations.  They tried to train established agents, but found in the first place they were not skilled enough.  Even more they ran into a culture problem.  Taken from other cases, agents found they were often ridiculed because even when successful there were seldom arrests and the crimes seemed less serious.  Promotions were largely based on arrests.  When the F.B.I. tried to recruit the really skilled, there was no interest in the regular training program and no desire to carry a gun.  Over time some rules were bent and a strategy of contracting skilled operators for specific projects.

In the Netherlands, a different strategy developed.  The started a branch called the High Tech Crime Unit.  Soon they actually recruited skilled hackers and paired them with regular trained officers.  The high tech people were part of the culture.  Another development occurred when an autistic person was directed to them which at first was resisted, but persistence resulted in training that paid off.  Pairing an autistic with a regular agent worked better as there was respect on both sides.

The ransomware hackers at first had money sent to safe accounts in places like Panama, but realizing they might be traced discovered bitcoin which was much harder to trace.  Iran, Russia and North Korea are almost impossible to penetrate as they do not have extradition to the U.S.

COVID increased society's dependence on the inter-net.  Schools were shifting to online instruction which could be disrupted.. 

Recovery companies saw an opportunity to help victims.  Unfortunately many of them were exploitative.   Some companies would negotiate a lower demand and keep the difference without telling the client.  Sometimes making a working relationship with the attackers to their mutual benefit.

Insurance companies are finding it more difficult to insure with the ransomware amounts escalated.   Negotiations original demand

As defenses get more sophisticated so also do offenses.  This book was published in 2022 and is excellent to bringing you up to that date..

This account is told by investigative reporter Renee Dudley and Pulitzer Prize winner Daniel Golden.

KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON A BIT OF HISTORY RELEVANT TODAY

We should be grateful that authors for whatever reason are able to dig up forgotten history.  Some gets buried because it might seem trivial or non relevant.  Some gets buried for other reasons.  "Killers of the Flower Moon" contains elements that should be remembered.  We are aware of discrimination against indigenous people, but it is easily dismissed.  The FBI  is revered today, but was heavily involved in politics and cover-ups.

The title comes from an Osage memory.  In April small flowers start to bloom, but in May under a large moon, larger flowers cut off the smaller plants that then die.  Hence the larger flowers are the killers of the flower moon.

The book focuses on a series of murders that happened between 1921 and 1926.  That is, the first part of the book does.  It was a national concern, but there was a preliminary and a followup to what was publicly viewed.

The Osage Indians had been forced to move a few times in their history.  Like other Indian tribes they got in the way of settler ambitions.  When they were located to Oklahoma they were clever enough to ask for mineral rights.  A few years later oil was produced in a big way.  The likes of John Paul Getty participated.  They were given headstone rights which meant they derived a portion of the oil revenues that in fact made them the richest per capita group in America.  One catch was that the majority of them had guardians that restricted their spending.

Many of the murders were first thought of as suspicious deaths.  In fact the death rate for the Osage who were very wealthy was well above the national average.  Some of the murders were more conventional including shootings and bombings.  Many of the suspicious deaths turned out to be poisonings.  Local law enforcement seemed incapable of determining who was responsible.  Intimidation, prejudice and bribery all played a role.

The F.B.I. was under J. Edgar Hoover who was very anxious to prove the justification and expand bolstering of his agency.  They had had failures.  The Osage murders were botched at first and because of national attention Hoover was determined to sort it out.  There were jurisdiction issues which were bent a little at times.  J. Edgar was fastidious in his expectations always wanting to improve the image of his agents.

He called in Al White, a former Texas Ranger, who was willing to put in the necessary effort to unravel available facts.  Undercover agents were used.  It took countless details to realize the many hidden connections.  At last there was a conviction and it was revealed the motivation was to gain the headstone rights.

The author visited the area several times and checked out sources in other parts of the country. Talking to some of the descendants of the victims he realized the mystery had not really been solved.  He became almost certain a particular banker was heavily involved in some of  the deaths.  He realized there were many deaths that were not explained.

We all love a good mystery and this book provides an enjoyable read, but it also highlights the unfair treatment indigenous people have had to endure.  It also lets a little light on how the F.B.I. got established.  David Grann writes a good narrative backed by some meticulous research.  I saw a movie based on his "Lost City of Z" which was about uncovering an ancient Amazon civilization.  You can find out about his other books and projects at https://www.davidgrann.com