DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized • Hacker News Board

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#451

Post by breck » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:20 PM UTC

justapassenger wrote: post #386

breck wrote: post #317

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In 2016, while I was still working at Microsoft, they gave us cloud engineers a separate laptop for accessing customer data (they called them SAWS, for Secure Access Workstation), because they decided that our normal everyday Windows 10 machines with root privileges could not be trusted. This was in 2016, not 2001. I do not think you can have secure Windows infrastructure today. In the future, a few years after it's…

This sounds more like a policy decision. Any serious company is heavily limiting how customer data is accessed. Lots of them have special rooms, with heavy physical security, where you cannot even bring electronic watch, not even talking about your work phone or normal work laptop. And those companies often run on Linux. Open source doesn’t make stuff magically secure. Remember heartbleed? Or how easy it’s was proven…

Agreed that open source isn't perfect, but 99.999% secure is still a lot better than 99.9% secure.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#452

Post by babypuncher » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:21 PM UTC

TrackerFF wrote: post #202

bredren wrote: post #45

It was a mistake to attack the business side of the oil company, because it created what could be sold as reasonable doubt to shut down the pipeline. As a result, the ransom had the optics of an attack on infrastructure. As evidenced by the coverage of Americans desperately filling up containers. This created the impetus for the US to treat this as an incident far and above the ambient ransomware activities leading u…

I got downvoted for saying that maybe it's time to treat serious ransomware attacks (infrastructure, security, health, etc.) as terrorism - as in the sense that they're a threat to the national security. But this kinda shows the response I was referencing to. A lot of people like to think of ransomware attacks as the ultimate stress test as far as security goes, and thus a good thing - but let's not get too blinded b…

That reasoning is really dumb. It's like saying school shootings are the ultimate stress test on a local police department. They sure are, but nobody in their right mind should ever argue that getting real world experience with one is ever a good thing.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#453

Post by dstroot » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:28 PM UTC

this_user wrote: post #245

bredren wrote: post #45

It was a mistake to attack the business side of the oil company, because it created what could be sold as reasonable doubt to shut down the pipeline. As a result, the ransom had the optics of an attack on infrastructure. As evidenced by the coverage of Americans desperately filling up containers. This created the impetus for the US to treat this as an incident far and above the ambient ransomware activities leading u…

The fact that their coins were apparently easily stolen also debunks another favourite talking point of the crypto people that it secures your money from government access. Clearly, ways and means have been developed to do just that if necessary.

This is the most puzzling part of the story. These guys were evidently pretty skilled. I can see their servers being seized but I am struggling to figure out how they lost their currency. Did the Kremlin put a gun to their head and say “unlock the wallet”? This seems especially fishy.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#454

Post by darig » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:32 PM UTC

TrackerFF wrote: post #202

bredren wrote: post #45

It was a mistake to attack the business side of the oil company, because it created what could be sold as reasonable doubt to shut down the pipeline. As a result, the ransom had the optics of an attack on infrastructure. As evidenced by the coverage of Americans desperately filling up containers. This created the impetus for the US to treat this as an incident far and above the ambient ransomware activities leading u…

I got downvoted for saying that maybe it's time to treat serious ransomware attacks (infrastructure, security, health, etc.) as terrorism - as in the sense that they're a threat to the national security. But this kinda shows the response I was referencing to. A lot of people like to think of ransomware attacks as the ultimate stress test as far as security goes, and thus a good thing - but let's not get too blinded b…

> I got downvoted for saying that maybe it's time to treat serious ransomware attacks (infrastructure, security, health, etc.) as terrorism.

Maybe it's time to treat distributing software that is susceptible to ransomware attacks as terrorism.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#455

Post by kwertyoowiyop » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:33 PM UTC

21eleven wrote: post #254

this_user wrote: post #245

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fact that their coins were apparently easily stolen also debunks another favourite talking point of the crypto people that it secures your money from government access. Clearly, ways and means have been developed to do just that if necessary.

Or one of the members of the criminal gang ran off with all the cryptocurrency and then made a public post claiming some form of law enforcement seized the crypto.

Or maybe they all did.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#456

Post by kwertyoowiyop » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:34 PM UTC

spyder wrote: post #447

this_user wrote: post #245

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fact that their coins were apparently easily stolen also debunks another favourite talking point of the crypto people that it secures your money from government access. Clearly, ways and means have been developed to do just that if necessary.

I don't see anywhere that the coins where stolen by the government. It could have been done by an insider from the group who had access to the wallet and 1. transferred to himself or 2. the damage and attention was to much for one of them and some ethics kicked in and ratted out the group to government. gave them his access. 3. the group got scared from the attention and stopped their operation and lying about the se…

Hey, if you can’t trust anonymous cyber extortionists, who can you trust?

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#457

Post by gameswithgo » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:38 PM UTC

robocat wrote: post #396

doomroot wrote: post #294

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the bitcoin space it’s colloquially known as the “$5 wrench attack.” All the cryptographic, air gapped security hardware doesn’t matter if someone can beat the keys out of you.

Also perhaps a fair reason for some part of taxation. Owning millions in .*coin, and the ability to freely wander around in a first world country while not getting hit with a wrench has a whole lot of value.

Indeed, something I've tried to communicate to wealthy friends and family is that a higher tax rate,used halfway effectively, means you don't have to live in a gated community, in fear. You can roll around in your Ferrari, live where you want, and be reasonably safe.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#458

Post by toyg » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:38 PM UTC

twobitshifter wrote: post #232

omgwtfbbq wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>It also gave the US an opportunity to show how effective it could be when it had the political cover to do so. Not sure what you mean, what did the US do exactly?

These guys retweeted the story. They didn’t claim responsibility but it’s a tacit acknowledgment of their involvement. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/780th_Military_Intelligence_... https://mobile.twitter.com/TheRecord_Media/status/1393192862...

Wow, their motto is “ubique et semper in pugna” - everywhere and always fighting. Scary platform.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#459

Post by neither_color » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:42 PM UTC

bredren wrote: post #45

It was a mistake to attack the business side of the oil company, because it created what could be sold as reasonable doubt to shut down the pipeline. As a result, the ransom had the optics of an attack on infrastructure. As evidenced by the coverage of Americans desperately filling up containers. This created the impetus for the US to treat this as an incident far and above the ambient ransomware activities leading u…

The more cynical part of me thinks the key is not which side of the company was attacked, rather the fact that it was an OIL company. The US has basically an unlimited budget and resources to go after organizations that mess with its oil supply.

Re: DarkSide ransomware gang quits after servers, Bitcoin stash seized

#460

Post by bolasanibk » Fri, May 14, 2021, 9:48 PM UTC

dstroot wrote: post #453

this_user wrote: post #245

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fact that their coins were apparently easily stolen also debunks another favourite talking point of the crypto people that it secures your money from government access. Clearly, ways and means have been developed to do just that if necessary.

This is the most puzzling part of the story. These guys were evidently pretty skilled. I can see their servers being seized but I am struggling to figure out how they lost their currency. Did the Kremlin put a gun to their head and say “unlock the wallet”? This seems especially fishy.

I can see plenty of governments doing exactly that.

https://xkcd.com/538/