The United Kingdom government is considering a proposal to ban all forms of ransomware payments, a move that could potentially save billions of dollars. Ransomware is a form of cyber attack that encrypts a user's data and demands a ransom in exchange for the decryption key. This type of attack has become more prevalent in recent years, affecting businesses, government organizations, and individuals worldwide.
The proposal to ban these payments is being put forward as a way to discourage cybercriminals. If victims are not allowed to pay the ransom, it is believed that the incentive for such attacks would decrease. However, there are concerns that this could lead to the loss of critical data if a decryption key cannot be obtained. It's a double-edged sword, as paying the ransom fuels the criminal enterprise, yet not paying could result in significant data loss.
The UK is not the first country to consider such a move. In 2020, the United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued an advisory warning that any company making a ransomware payment could be violating sanctions laws. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also discourages the act of paying ransoms, noting that it does not guarantee the retrieval of encrypted data.
Statistics suggest that billions of dollars could be saved if the proposal goes through. According to a recent report by Cybersecurity Ventures, global damages related to ransomware attacks are predicted to reach $20 billion by 2021, up from $325 million in 2015. The report also predicts that by 2021, a business will fall victim to a ransomware attack every 11 seconds.
While the proposal is yet to be passed, it's clear that governments are taking steps to clamp down on cybercrime. This potential ban on ransomware payments could be a significant game-changer in the fight against cybercriminals, though it also poses risks and challenges that need to be carefully considered and mitigated.