"Business Professors Study Ideal Responses to Ransomware Attacks"

Business professors and a doctoral student at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) are looking at how ransomware attacks, in some cases, can set organizations against the law enforcement agencies that are trying to protect them. Their study titled "Coping with Digital Extortion: An Experimental Study on Benefit Appeals and Normative Appeals" explains that companies find it sensible to negotiate with their attackers to decrease the demanded ransom. However, the decision to negotiate with ransomware attackers motivates the malicious actors to continue performing such attacks, thus countering the FBI's suggestion to not give in to paying a ransom. Part of the UTA study looks at how companies can be nudged into adopting strategies that decrease the risk of digital extortion. The researchers used behavioral game theory in the exploration of tactics, such as investing in cybersecurity or refusing to pay ransoms. They conducted experiments involving human subjects to analyze decisions made by interacting players. The study suggests that even if companies pay the ransom, they still have to pay for added security. This article continues to discuss the UTA study that explores responses to ransomware attacks. 

UTA reports "Business Professors Study Ideal Responses to Ransomware Attacks"