How extortionware, cyberextortion and ransomware differ

<p>All businesses process, store and transmit customer, partner and company data. This data ranges from internal documents to price lists to HR notes on employee behavior. If released to the public, however, this information could cause tremendous embarrassment and potential legal troubles for an organization.</p>
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<p>The confidentiality and importance of such data make it a ripe target for threat actors looking to extort money from their victims.</p>
<p>Let’s look at extortionware and <a href=”https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/definition/ransomware”>ransomware</a> and see how they fit into the larger cyberextortion picture.</p>
<section class=”section main-article-chapter” data-menu-title=”How does extortionware work?”>
<h2 class=”section-title”><i class=”icon” data-icon=”1″></i>How does extortionware work?</h2>
<p>In most cases, extortionware uses traditional <a href=”https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/definition/malware”>malware</a> to infiltrate a company’s digital resources. Once access is gained, the victim’s data is stolen and analyzed to identify information that can be used against them. Cybercriminals then contact the victim and threaten to release sensitive, embarrassing or otherwise valuable information to the public unless the victim meets the criminals’ demands. Typically, the demands are monetary in nature and involve the transfer of cryptocurrency.</p>
</section>
<section class=”section main-article-chapter” data-menu-title=”How does ransomware work?”>
<h2 class=”section-title”><i class=”icon” data-icon=”1″></i>How does ransomware work?</h2>
<p>Ransomware is malware that locks and encrypts a victim’s digital resources, ranging from select data to the entire computer system, making them inaccessible until a <a href=”https://www.techtarget.com/searchsecurity/tip/Should-companies-pay-ransomware-and-is-it-illegal-to”>ransom payment is made to the attacker</a>. Ransomware is usually distributed through an infected attachment or malicious link.</p>
<p>Once ransomware has infected a u

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