Victims are given the option of not paying the ransom as long as they spread the ransomware virus to two other computers
To most people the Ponzi Scheme will say little to nothing. Yet in the IT field it is much feared. It is a system practiced by hackers to increase the spread of their attacks. In fact, hackers offer a victim of ransomware two possibilities.
The first one is the classic ransom payment. The user is informed with a first message that his PC has been hit by ransomware. At this point, to get back the data contained in the machine that the malicious code has encrypted, the victim has to make the payment. Normally, the currency preferred by hackers is bitcoin. Or he has another choice in front of him: turn himself into a hacker and spread the ransom virus to two other computers. In return, the hackers promise to give him the keys to decrypt his own computer. And so, through this treacherous system, the ransom virus affects more users.
Ponzi Scheme: ransomware becomes more aggressive
The first ransomware to resort to this fearsome practice were those belonging to the family known as Popcorn Time. As many researchers claim, Ponzi Scheme is increasingly used by hackers. And it is yet another weapon in the hands of cyber criminals to take ransomware to a more aggressive level as it offers victims a second way to recover their data.
The Ponzi scheme is a type of scam whose origin is not IT but financial. The victims are led to believe that by involving other people they will get more money. In reality they do nothing but increase the deception. Just as hackers are doing. Combining this devious technique with the ransomware virus, in fact, the threat becomes more and more dangerous and difficult to contain.