The hackers behind the WannaCry ransomware attack have finally cashed out

A programer shows a sample of a ransomware cyberattack on a laptop in Taipei, Taiwan, 13 May, 2017. According to news reports, a 'WannaCry' ransomware cyber attack hits thousands of computers in 99 countries encrypting files from affected computer units and demanding 300 US dollars through bitcoin to decrypt the files.

It’s been 12 weeks since the WannaCry ransomware attack infected computers across the globe, encrypting their files and charging their owners $300 to $600 for the keys to get them back. In total, the hackers made about $140,000 in bitcoin from the operation, which on May 12 forced emergency rooms in the U.K. to turn away patients, and shut down a Spanish telecommunications company and a Russian cellphone operator.

Since the attack, that $140,000 sat untouched, spread across the three bitcoin wallets where victims were instructed to send their ransom payments. Few expected the money would ever move out of the accounts, as they were surely watched by law-enforcement agencies around the world. But on Wednesday night, the money began to move.

A Twitter bot set up by Quartz to watch the bitcoin accounts, which are publicly accessible on the blockchain, picked up the first withdrawals at 11:10pm ET

***SOURCE: ***
https://qz.com/1045270/wannacry-update-the-hackers-behind-ransomware-attack-finally-cashed-out-about-140000-in-bitcoin/

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