In Brief

Ripe Targets for Online Extortion

Who, What, When, Where, Why & How for the most likely targets of online extortionists

By Scott Berinato

May 01, 2005 — CSO — Who: Companies that deal in cash transactions online.

What: Infrastructure that connects to the Internet and can be taken down remotely by hackers. The less secure your infrastructure, the more likely you'll be a target.

When: During an important time for marketing, investor relations (for example, a merger) or earning revenue. The more important the season is, the more likely you'll be a target.

Where: Often companies outside the United States, away from the FBI and strict anti-hacking laws. The looser the laws around computer crime in your area, the more likely you'll be a target.

Why: Online extortion is safer, easier and more profitable than other criminal enterprises.

How: Extortionists will launch a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack to knock a site offline, and then demand a protection fee of $10,000 to $100,000 in exchange for restoring your site.

-S.B.

Other stories by Scott Berinato

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