In a digital version of a criminal shakedown, international hackers have gained control of files on millions of computers, taken down public websites and demanded that their victims pay up using the untraceable virtual currency.
In the old days, criminals liked their ransom payments in briefcases full of unmarked bills.
These days, there’s a new preferred method for hostage takers: the virtual currency bitcoin.
In a modern-day version of a mob shakedown, hackers around the world have seized files on millions of computers, taken down public websites and even, in a few cases, threatened physical harm.