When the entire world plunged into chaos due to the lockdown of network data, a portion of the extortionists, either out of a change of heart or fearing unimaginable criminal liability if found, abandoned their pursuit of money. They directly handed over the decryption keys to the extorted companies and then systematically erased all traces of their existence online, disappearing without a trace.
However, some extortionists remained resolute and refused to yield the keys without receiving the payment.
What's more, some extortionists, perhaps fearing that further contact would leave clues leading to their discovery, vanished completely even when the other party was willing to pay. Consequently, the decryption keys became unobtainable, driving those companies to the brink of desperation, their hair nearly pulled out.
Ultimately, the impact of this incident was terrifying and far-reaching. Numerous companies, crippled by data loss, struggled for months before declaring bankruptcy. Others never recovered, announcing their demise after several years of decline.
The collapse of these companies also led to widespread unemployment among their staff.
Most critically, the data of many government functional departments was locked. This rendered countless daily services related to people's lives unusable, causing severe disruptions. Many individuals were unable to receive social security benefits, ultimately leading to poverty and death.
Yet, there were also fortunate outcomes. In the Netherlands, for instance, a group of criminals, awaiting trial for offenses committed in the near future, were in the process of evidence collection.
However, all the collected evidence was locked. As a result, during the trials, the prosecution was unable to present any evidence proving the defendants' guilt, forcing the court to acquit them. This was likely the most gratefully received act by any extortionist.
Following such chaos, those who had suffered immensely naturally sought an explanation: what caused such a devastating situation, and why were so many companies' computer systems worldwide hacked and all their data encrypted?
The answer was not difficult to find. Given the sheer number of victimized companies, there were also a multitude of extortionists. It was inevitable that some unfortunate individuals would leave clues for the police, leading to their arrest.
The first to reveal the truth was The Times, which, on the fourth day after resuming operations, published an exclusive report.
This exclusive report, sourced from the police, detailed how law enforcement had outsmarted and apprehended two suspects involved in a cyber extortion case.
Of course, these details were not the crux of the matter; the key lay in the confessions of these two suspects.
According to their accounts, they were merely unemployed individuals who, due to their passion for computers and networks, frequented various professional technical forums. They possessed some foundational technical knowledge but were still a considerable distance from being hackers, as they didn't even know how to breach an opponent's firewall.
However, opportunity often arises unexpectedly, and this particular opportunity was the detailed information regarding the Lj incident published by sn.
As mentioned earlier, this comprehensive document contained a backdoor specifically designed by Microsoft for its security department. This backdoor allowed the security department to directly control any computer they wished and remotely package and encrypt all data within that computer.
The complete technical documentation and code for this backdoor were directly disclosed within this information.
While this data and technology might seem incredibly dull and uninteresting to ordinary individuals, for professionals, it was the finest research material imaginable.
Consequently, across various network technology forums, almost everyone was discussing this document, dissecting the technical details it revealed, especially the backdoor meticulously designed by Microsoft.
After studying the backdoor, many technical experts declared that its programming was exceptionally sophisticated.
Firstly, the backdoor was deeply hidden. Had the document not explicitly pointed out its existence, even world-class computer programmers like themselves would have been unable to detect it.
Because this backdoor was integral to the entire foundational architecture, it had to be incorporated during the initial stages of writing the most fundamental parts of the computer system. This clearly indicated a backdoor created by internal Microsoft personnel, not one that could be casually added later.
Secondly, the backdoor was designed to be very user-friendly. With the corresponding software, even security department executives with limited computer skills could remotely control any desired computer through a nearly foolproof program.
The data and documentation provided by sn also made these functionalities available without reservation.
While most programmers on the forums studied these materials with mere curiosity and without any malicious intent, there were always individuals with unconventional ideas. For example, one programmer posted on a forum, proposing an idea.
He queried whether, by using this set of tools, they could easily seize control of any company's server and then lock and encrypt all the data within it.
Since these servers all ran on Windows systems, regardless of how robust their defenses were, they would be rendered useless against the backdoor program provided by Windows itself. Theoretically, they should be able to gain control of these highly defended servers with relative ease.
This conjecture was immediately met with enthusiastic responses, and some individuals proceeded to use this software to infiltrate their own companies' servers.
The software only required knowledge of the server's IP address or its hardware code for direct intrusion.
Therefore, as long as these two pieces of information were known, infiltrating a server was an undertaking even a child could accomplish.
The facts proved that the data provided by sL was accurate. Many individuals, driven by curiosity to test it, successfully gained access to the company's servers.
Up to this point, the attitude of most people involved remained one of simple curiosity.
However, there were always astute individuals who could identify incredible business opportunities. Thus, within twenty minutes, someone posted on the forum stating they had successfully used this tool to infiltrate a company they detested, locking all its internal data and ensuring the company would descend into complete chaos the next day.
This individual's initial motivation was simply revenge against someone they disliked.
But soon, a reply ignited this crime. A newly created account responded, "You could sell them the decryption key for $100,000. Wouldn't that make you rich?"
This comment triggered a cascade of enthusiastic replies, definitively ushering in the dark night of the internet. Countless hackers, upon seeing this, had a sudden realization.
Indeed, they could utilize these tools to extort large corporations.
By locking their data and demanding a ransom, they could ensure those companies would never recover their data.
That very evening, many hackers took immediate action, launching attacks against various enterprises. Due to the existence of the backdoor, these attacks encountered virtually no difficulty, breaching defenses and seizing the opponent's data.
However, at this stage, such activities were relatively limited, and the number of affected companies was small. Nevertheless, many news media outlets reported on the situations of these companies. Furthermore, some hackers boasted on forums about the substantial ransoms they had received, ranging from thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars. The internet could no longer suppress the widespread desire for overnight wealth.
Because the tool was remarkably convenient and required almost no technical expertise, only the company's IP address or hardware code was needed. This made intrusion effortlessly achievable.
Consequently, anyone who saw relevant news could immediately put it into practice. Unlike traditional hacking, where even if you were interested in the technology, you would need months or even years to learn the necessary skills.
This situation enabled anyone with malicious intent to become a hacker, and they simultaneously launched intrusions against at least one company for extortion.
Within three days, this resulted in the paralysis of the global network and the loss of numerous social functions, plunging the entire world into chaos akin to an apocalyptic disaster.
When The Times revealed the ultimate truth, people who had suffered immensely during those days invariably turned their anger towards Microsoft.
The implication was that all of this was Microsoft's doing. They had left this backdoor, which ultimately allowed those damned individuals to infiltrate various company databases without difficulty. Microsoft, it turned out, was the prime culprit.
Previously, when only personal privacy data was compromised, the general public did not feel overly concerned, and there were very few protest marches.
However, when tangible harm occurred in their immediate vicinity, and many suffered unimaginable actual losses, Microsoft faced immense pressure.
Especially since the vast majority of victims were companies and businesses. When these entities discovered that all their losses stemmed from Microsoft, a barrage of lawsuits and legal letters became unavoidable. Within just two weeks, over 320,000 companies and individuals had filed lawsuits against Microsoft, demanding compensation for their losses.