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Ransomware Negotiation Tactics: Leveraging Hacker Psychology

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📰 1 unique sources, 1 articles

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Ransomware attacks are increasingly sophisticated, opportunistic, and time-sensitive. Organizations can leverage these traits to their advantage during negotiations. Hackers operate like professional SaaS vendors, targeting hundreds of organizations with organized processes. They seek sensitive information to tailor demands and exploit vulnerabilities. Organizations can prepare by establishing ransomware playbooks and negotiating strategies to reduce demands or expose bluffs. Preparation is key. Organizations should proactively establish relationships with ransomware negotiators, develop detailed playbooks, and regularly practice scenarios. By understanding hacker psychology, organizations can turn the urgency of attackers against them, slowing negotiations to reduce ransom demands.

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  1. 02.09.2025 17:00 📰 1 articles

    Ransomware Negotiation Tactics: Leveraging Hacker Psychology

    Ransomware attacks are increasingly sophisticated, opportunistic, and time-sensitive. Organizations can leverage these traits to their advantage during negotiations. Hackers operate like professional SaaS vendors, targeting hundreds of organizations with organized processes. They seek sensitive information to tailor demands and exploit vulnerabilities. Organizations can prepare by establishing ransomware playbooks and negotiating strategies to reduce demands or expose bluffs. Preparation is key. Organizations should proactively establish relationships with ransomware negotiators, develop detailed playbooks, and regularly practice scenarios. By understanding hacker psychology, organizations can turn the urgency of attackers against them, slowing negotiations to reduce ransom demands.

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Information Snippets

  • Major ransomware gangs like LockBit, BlackCat, and RansomHub operate like professional SaaS vendors, targeting hundreds of organizations.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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  • LockBit targeted over 2,000 companies worldwide and received over $120 million in ransom before its takedown in 2024.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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  • 88% of breaches involved the use of stolen credentials, and 54% of ransomware victims had domains exposed in stealer log marketplaces, according to Verizon's 2025 Data Breach Investigations Report.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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  • Hackers seek sensitive information to tailor demands and exploit vulnerabilities.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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  • Organizations should keep sensitive documents hidden and credentials locked down to reduce risk.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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  • Organizations can use the LAP test (logical, acceptable, plausible) for counteroffers during ransomware negotiations.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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  • Deliberately slowing down the negotiation process can make hackers antsy enough to drop their price significantly.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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  • Organizations should establish ransomware playbooks and regularly practice negotiation scenarios.

    First reported: 02.09.2025 17:00
    📰 1 source, 1 article
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Similar Happenings

North Korean actors exploit fake employee identities to infiltrate companies

North Korean state-sponsored hackers have infiltrated companies by using fake or stolen identities to secure IT jobs. These actors have stolen virtual currency and funneled money to North Korea's weapons program. The practice has grown with the rise of remote work and AI, posing significant security risks to organizations. The Justice Department has disrupted several laptop farms enabling these activities, but the threat persists. The U.S. Treasury has imposed sanctions on individuals and entities involved in the scheme, highlighting the use of AI to create convincing professional backgrounds and technical portfolios. Organizations are advised to enhance supervision, access governance, and use AI tools to detect and mitigate these insider threats. Japan, South Korea, and the United States are cooperating to combat North Korean IT worker fraud schemes. The joint forum held on Aug. 26 in Tokyo aimed to improve collaboration among the three countries. The scheme involves thousands of operatives and facilitators with distinct roles, including setting up laptop farms, contacting recruiters, and processing stolen information. The North Korean remote-worker scheme has collected more than $88 million over six years. The number of North Korean operatives infiltrating companies by posing as remote IT workers has increased by 220% year-over-year. North Korean operatives have used AI-generated profiles, deepfakes, and real-time AI manipulation to pass interviews and vetting protocols. American accomplices have operated laptop farms to provide North Korean operatives with physical US setups, company-issued machines, and domestic addresses and identities. The threat of hiring fraud is escalating quickly, with over 320 cases of North Korean operatives infiltrating companies reported in August 2025.

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