Melissa Hathaway Featured article in The Institute for New Economic Thinking:

Hijacked and Paying the Price - Why Ransomware Gangs Should be Designated as Terrorists

Ransomware gangs have been causing extensive damage. It’s time that the government takes them more seriously.

Ransomware Operators Are Increasingly Acting Like Terrorists

One brazen incident has created a sense of urgency and catalyzed an acute awareness of the impacts of ransomware. The flow of roughly 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast of the United States has been halted because Colonial Pipeline’s information technology (IT) systems (computers, applications, and data) were hijacked by DarkSide, a ransomware operator with links to Russia. Colonial’s temporary halt of its pipeline operations was a proactive measure to protect those systems from being fatally encrypted like other parts of its corporate network.  continued...

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Melissa hathaway is a member of the Potomac Institute Board of Regensts, and a Senior Fellow.