Ransomware negotiator weighs in on the extortion payment debate

May 12, 2024 – Published on The Register

Ransomware hit an all-time high last year, with more than 60 criminal gangs listing at least 4,500 victims – and these infections don’t show any signs of slowing.

Drew Schmitt is a professional ransomware negotiator and practice lead for the GuidePoint Research and Intelligence Team, or GRIT — the team that compiled the above-mentioned 2023 figures.

In this role, Schmitt has interacted with all of the major ransomware crews. The Register recently caught up with him to discuss the criminal gangs’ evolving ransomware tactics, the role he plays in companies’ incident response when they have suffered an infection or intrusion, and the larger question of whether ransomware payments should be completely banned. 

“When we’re talking about these types of situations on my team, we’re talking about threat actor communications rather than negotiations, because there is so much more that goes into what we do other than just making a payment,” Schmitt said. “We are there to advise on risk. We are there to have conversations with threat actors, focused on recovery, rather than moving towards a payment.”

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