Live data from Hacker News

GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

cloudsek.com

121–130 of 366 posts

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#121

This thing was written by someone who doesn't live in a developed country... There's no way to do those actions in a developed country. Does this person think that just random children are available to be given food to?

At my youngest child's elementary school, I could pick random kids to give food to and have an 80% chance of them being disadvantaged and/or food insecure. The only tricky part would be contacting their parents to get permission and/or get the parents to come along, and that would be manageable.

Arguably I don't live in a developed country, but it's a US state...

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#122
post #23

Can I assume that the author of this ransomware is American or at least is very immersed in American culture? Because the activities listed sound very America-centric. I've never seen someone actually sleeping roadside in the cold, and since we have universal healthcare, I've also not heard of someone dying in the hospital because their loved ones couldn't gather up enough money. I guess I might as well just smash my…

It seems to come from India, though the only identifiers seem rather weak. I'll admit I know little about poverty in India, but all three seem possible there.

Doesn't India still have universal healthcare?

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#123

Tangentially, I dislike strongly when people record videos of themselves doing "goodwill" for others—especially for social media; it always reeks [to me] of insincerity. Not to mention the often unwanted spotlight it casts onto the receiver of said goodwill. If one cares, one does acts of goodwill privately, without thinking about how others will react—including and especially—on the internet. "The true test of a man…

"Oh, the best charity is to give and not let other people know.

But what if your example encourages others to give?"

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#124

Tangentially, I dislike strongly when people record videos of themselves doing "goodwill" for others—especially for social media; it always reeks [to me] of insincerity. Not to mention the often unwanted spotlight it casts onto the receiver of said goodwill. If one cares, one does acts of goodwill privately, without thinking about how others will react—including and especially—on the internet. "The true test of a man…

See also, "Extremis", modern Doctor Who series 10 episode 6 [0]:

"Only in darkness are we revealed. Goodness is not goodness that seeks advantage. Good is good in the final hour, in the deepest pit, without hope, without witness, without reward. Virtue is only virtue in extremis."

[0] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6340130/characters/nm0524240

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#125
post #90
post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wouldn't any legitimate charity return money that was donated through coercion? If someone stole something and gave it to me, and the rightful owner asked for it back, I would give it back. I guess it would just look bad asking for them to return it but most people would understand.

The malware group is not asking for donations to organizations, but to individuals at the hospital. They are requiring that someone at the infected business records videos of themselves going to a hospital or health clinic, looking for people who seem like they need financial help and offering to help them pay for their medical care. 1) Good luck suing poor individuals to get your money back 2) It's hard to fathom wh…

I imagine you'd explain before recording what is going on (assuming you don't just fake the entire thing with some friends), rather than doing anything as silly as suing anybody. It wouldn't take more than a token amount to get people to participate. A lot of people wouldn't even want money. They'd get that this kind of blackmail is horrible and help you out.

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#127

Tangentially, I dislike strongly when people record videos of themselves doing "goodwill" for others—especially for social media; it always reeks [to me] of insincerity. Not to mention the often unwanted spotlight it casts onto the receiver of said goodwill. If one cares, one does acts of goodwill privately, without thinking about how others will react—including and especially—on the internet. "The true test of a man…

IDK, my family was poor and had no concept of charity.

The first time I donated something was after a friend shared a social project they helped in LinkedIn. That was when I thought "hey, I'm kinda wealthy now, I probably could help.".

So, I understand where you are coming from, influencers and shit, but there's a real chance that by doing any charity publicly you might trigger others to do as well.

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#128
post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Taxation is coercion. Higher taxation is higher coercion. With that being said, the US already spends more on public healthcare than Canada does, so the problem is a lot more complex than where should the money come from.

You can just as well say that property is coercion. Like I get that you won't agree, but you are asserting a value system when you do that.

taking something with the threat of force is not the same as owning something that you traded for in a mutually agreed upon transaction

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#129
post #5

Hah, Black Mirror-esque. But well, hopefully it has a IP filter to not hit countries with universal healthcare. /s And asking stranger kids "Hey kids, want some KFC?"... that should go well. "The hacker 4chan made me do it!"

Even in countries with universal healthcare, people regularly can't afford treatment because expensive treatments aren't included.

Like in the UK, teeth are considered luxury bones.

Re: GoodWill ransomware forces victims to donate to the poor

#130
post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’ve met tons of script kiddies over the years and none of them were concerned about employment. They do what they do just to show that they can.

>I’ve met tons of script kiddies over the years and none of them were concerned about employment. Your sample is probably biased in some way. I've met many who feel trapped in wage slavery, here in the USA.

agree. the freelancer / gig economy is dominate by script kiddie / template churner companies in India for whom $2/hr is a good wage. there's no competing with that
Post reply on HN