Ponzi Scheme Meets Ransomware for a Doubly Malicious Attack - The New York Times

Extreme antisocial networking

"The victim had a choice: Pay the hackers a ransom of one bitcoin, a digital currency worth roughly $2,365, in exchange for regaining access to the computer, or try to infect two new people on behalf of the attackers. If someone the victim knew fell for the bait and became infected, the attackers would consider the ransom paid and cede control of the infected computer.

The attack late last year was, according to the cybersecurity researchers who discovered what they now call the Popcorn Time ransomware, the first Ponzi scheme for one of the internet’s oldest types of cyberattacks."

Ponzi Scheme Meets Ransomware for a Doubly Malicious Attack - The New York Times