Ransomware Victim Warning: The Streisand Effect May Apply

Analysis of Seized LockBit Data Suggests Victims Who Pay Enjoy More Media Coverage Mathew J. Schwartz (euroinfosec) • December 10, 2025

Paying off ransomware hackers to avoid notoriety is a losing proposition, finds a study of LockBit victims that identified a correlation between unwanted attention and succumbing to extortionists, as opposed to standing firm.

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"It seems that paying the ransom doesn't at all appear to reduce public exposure - if anything, it increases it," Max Smeets, co-director of Virtual Routes - formerly known as the European Cyber Conflict Research Initiative - said in a keynote presentation at the Black Hat Europe conference in London. Smeets holds research positions at ETH Zurich and Stanford University.

Smeets reviewed data gathered by Britain ...