HYDERABAD: An analysis of the Robinhood Ransomware, the malware which recently hacked into the websites of three State-run power distribution companies of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, revealed its unique nature of seeking a ransom. Firstly, the ransomware levied a penalty of $10,000 each day after the four-day deadline. It may be noted that the affected websites have been recovered.
Secondly, the ransomware encrypted all the files of the websites with an “asymmetric” algorithm — it had one private and one public key — used by computers to encrypt and decrypt data. The private key needed to decrypt the data was withheld by the hackers. “Is it possible to get back your data? Yes, we have a decrypter with all your private keys. You have two options to get all your data back.” And the text then detailed out the payment options in Bitcoins.
Thirdly, the hackers had a web address of their own, for the payments. Since bitcoins are not easily available, they also informed about the easiest way to buy them. “The easiest way is LocalBitcoins, but you can find more websites to buy bitcoin using Google Search: buy bitcoin online,” read the message.