US President Donald Trump's pirate group has threatened to release classified information that could harm his upcoming campaign, which they obtained from breaking into a famous law firm, unless he paid them $ 42 million.
The REvil hacker group obtained "dangerous" information after they penetrated the Grubman Shire Meiselas & Sacks law firm, which represents many famous actors and singers such as Lady Gaga, Nikki Minaj, Madonna, Robert Dinero and others.
The gang that specializes in electronic ransom crime has stolen data and leaked it on international websites in the past, and the ransomware expert who followed past theft crimes said it was difficult to know the data they stole, but he said the crime added to a wave of major blackmail attacks.
The group released Trump's first part information, which it described as "the least important" on the dark website. The files reviewed by Business Insider were documents and contracts emails indicating the negotiation of the legal use of the president's video interviews during his campaign.
| The behavior of ransomware groups has become more virulent and extremist than ever (Reuters) |
The law firm and pirates tore apart and the law firm
said in a statement that President Trump is not their customer, that they are not paying the ransom, and are working with the FBI to solve the problem.
Hackers have threatened to release more data about celebrities, including Bruce Springsteen, Christina Aguilera and dozens of others, if the law firm does not pay $ 42 million in ransom.
The pirate group came back to respond to the company statement by saying, "The lawyer says that Donald was never their client. He says we are deceiving them. Okay. The first part that contains the least harmful information we will publish."
"We are very happy that the stars and celebrities support (according to media reports) the lawyer, but how strong is their support when journalists start publishing these materials to the media? Then will they start refusing to participate in some events and concerts, withdraw the signed contracts and cancel their actions?" ".
The pirates indicated that the blame fell on the law firm and that it would be required to pay twice that amount and would lose its clients and reputation. They threatened that they would get money from this or another company, as they would display the information by auction every week to a celebrity.
The gang believes that there are people who want to buy this information, whether from the stars themselves, by the various media, or the enemies and competitors of these celebrities.
The group Thursday leaked 2.5 giga information about the singer Gaga, and this information reportedly included singer contract files with producers, artists, and other collaborators, confidentiality agreements, payment forms, and much more.
The move by the pirates came in response to the law firm's refusal to pay $ 21 million in ransom, and then raised it to 42 million now threatening to release Trump's information.
The pirates said, "Mr. Trump ... if you want to stay president, raise the sword over these (the law firm) or else you may forget this ambition forever." "As for you, voters, we tell you that after publishing this information, you certainly do not want to see him as president ... The deadline is one week," their statement added.
The lawyers ’statement confirmed their unwillingness to accept blackmail, saying,“ Our elections, our government, and our personal information are subject to escalating attacks by foreign cybercriminals. We are working directly with federal law enforcement authorities and we continue to work around the clock with leading experts in the world to address this situation. "
"They (the hackers) may not have anything important, and they may simply try to pressure to raise more money," said Brett Callow, a threat researcher at Emsisoft, a cyber security firm that specializes in ransomware. He described their behavior as "becoming more virulent and extremist than ever before. They are now using data against companies that have been stolen from them."