The thin line between saving a company and funding a crime

Ransomware negotiation is a dark but widely acknowledged reality in the cybersecurity industry — one that many argue is a necessary practice, even if it largely occurs out of sight. Brokering payments and terms with cybercriminals who hold organizations’ data and operations hostage places security professionals in a fraught position that requires them to balance a responsibility to meet their clients’ needs without fueling the spread of financially-motivated crime. The pitfalls of ransomware negotiation are excessive — pinning the goals of cybercrime against victims and incident response firms that typically face no good options.

Negotiators are charged with ensuring their clients don’t break any laws by financially supporting sanctioned criminals, but they also have to consider the lines