Inside the Dark Economy of Hacking and Ransomware

Based on the 2026 book "We Know You Can Pay A Million", the talk charts the rise of ransomware from pranksters tinkering with phone lines to cybercriminal gangs capable of taking down whole societies. The focus is on the human stories behind the malware and the grey ecosystem in which it thrives. We look at ransomware from all sides: how does ransomware look like from the perspectives of the various criminal, legal and grey businesses that produce, facilitate, fight or aim to reduce the impact of ransomware on victims? Whether it's cynical hackers seeking to maximise profits or desperate security technicians trying to get overwhelmed victims back online: this is a nail-biting true-crime account of how ransomware rose from a mere curiosity to a national security threat. The talk will engage average computer users with cybersecurity without the use of technical jargon. Participants will gain actionable insights into reducing their own and our collective vulnerability to this billion-dollar criminal extortion business.