
The Ransomware Superhero of Normal, Illinois - thecyborganizer
https://www.propublica.org/article/the-ransomware-superhero-of-normal-illinois
======
elipsey
Admirable initiative on his part. I'm sure that like me, a lot of you here can
identify with being a programmer who wasn't a traditional student.

Maybe not such a hot idea to out his personal details in a story like this
though. One of the things they (eventually) taught me in college was
operational security.

~~~
blotter_paper
On the other hand, flyjng this flag might be his best bet at landing a decent
job.

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noonespecial
The amount society is losing by making this guy wake up at 2am to deliver
papers on a friggin' bicycle just boggles the mind.

~~~
Wistar
Here is a gofundme for him. Not many funders, it looks like:

[https://www.gofundme.com/f/get-ransomware-hero-michael-
gille...](https://www.gofundme.com/f/get-ransomware-hero-michael-gillespie-
out-of-debt)

And a Patreon as well:
[https://www.patreon.com/demonslay335](https://www.patreon.com/demonslay335)

~~~
jszymborski
Might I ask, what is the trust model for GoFundMe campaigns launched on the
behalf of someone. Does GoFundMe do an escrow/arbitrage sort of thing to
assure that the money gets to Gillepsie and not the organiser of this event?

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bayesian_horse
Where did all those hackers go?

No idea, they ransomware.

~~~
jeron
boo

~~~
praptak
Tough crowd, tough crowd.

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randogogogo
I know this is a repost, which is rare for this site, but I feel such a
camaraderie with him and the homestate connection I'll vote it up again and
again.

~~~
thecyborganizer
I initially posted this story last week, and it didn't get much attention -
curiously, the next day I received an email from dang asking that I repost it!
From the email:

 _This is part of an experiment in giving good HN submissions multiple chances
at the front page. If you have any questions, let us know. And if you don 't
want these emails, sorry! Tell us and we won't do it again._

~~~
wyxuan
That’s interesting. Is this manual? Can’t dang just push it to the front page?

~~~
dredmorbius
It's a thumb-on-the-scales type thing. The story floats at the bottom of the
front page, and its timer is reset IIRC. The votes still need to come
organically, but at least a good story will stand a chance.

I've had several submissions put in the second chance queue. Some take off,
some don't. There are a few I plan to keep putting in rotation myself every
few months, at least for a while. (Not on any particular schedule, but as I'm
reminded of them, often from other relevant discussion.)

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cududa
Interesting. 3 years ago I had my credit card stolen and a bunch of purchases
made to a non-existent surf shop in Normal, IL.

~~~
g2ah5z
I went to college at Illinois State University, which is in Normal, IL. The
thought of there being a surf shop in a town that's in a middle of a cornfield
with no water nearby just cracks me up.

~~~
beat
What about Lake Bloomington? Miller Park "lake"? I suppose you could sit on a
surfboard in knee-deep dirty water until you got bored.

------
birdiesanders
Huh, odd to see Blono on the internet. Peoria and Bloomington/Normal are
pretty much forgotten outside of Central IL. I run a small repair shop and a
software design company in Peoria. Might have to go pay a visit to the only
computing celeb we have here!

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cwkoss
Never pay for ransomware - increasingly ransomware is being released that
doesn't actually save the encryption key, and so the extortionist just says
whatever they think will get you to pay the most money.

~~~
thephyber
It's also worth noting that if you pay ransomware, the organization you pay
now knows that you (1) are willing to pay, (2) don't have the technical
capability to avoid a malware infection, (3) don't have a full backup
solution.

Even if the ransomware is removed/disabled after payment, you are more likely
to be re-targeted either by the same group or that group may resell your
information to rival ransomware groups.

I'm not entirely against paying, but it's a risk calculation and you should
know _all_ of the risks.

~~~
bsaul
i have the feeling based on a recent experience that at least for individuals,
you’re not really « targeted ».it’s more of a fishnet approach , and then some
people will do the hotline to help you pay the bitcoins.

The guy asked my hijacked friend for the equivalent of 200€ in bitcoin. I
don’t see anyone spending time specifically on his case for that amount. A
skilled hacker able to « target » someone could make much more money actually
developing real software.

------
GhettoMaestro
I am amazed he gives all of this knowledge and tooling away for free. A very
wonderful contribution to everyone's security and research. My hat is off to
this e-Chad.

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Itaxpica
For anyone interested in kicking in some cash to support his work, the ID
Ransomware main page has a link to his Patreon, where for a dollar or more a
month you get to see pictures of his cats
([https://www.patreon.com/demonslay335](https://www.patreon.com/demonslay335))

(there's also a BTC address, for the crypto-inclined)

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Grangar
Oh man, that article went from super wholesome to way too real. I feel so
sorry for that man, I'm donating to his gofundme later this weekend. Something
like a patreon would be a good way to generate more income perhaps?

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Quarrelsome
about time to lock him up isn't it?

Sorry, still bitter about Marcus Hutchins's outcome.

~~~
tssva
Facing consequences for crimes committed?

~~~
Quarrelsome
its a discomfort with the seeming desire that all white hats are holy and
perfect and not accepting the grey that still contribute to positive outcomes.
Its about allowing people to err and redeem themselves.

I find these outcomes exclusionary to those with less positive upbringings and
backgrounds.

~~~
tssva
Allowing someone to err and redeem themselves doesn't mean letting the erring
go unpunished but to mitigate the punishment to reflect the redemption. This
is exactly what happened in this case. His later positive contributions were
considered when determining his punishment and his sentence was much lighter
than would generally be given for the crimes committed.

~~~
Quarrelsome
its not the sentence that's the problem, its the build up to the sentence and
the heavy-handed arm twisting.

The outcome is just going to be that people won't travel to the US for these
sorts of meet ups because they're treated as if they were violent drug barons
(sentencing aside).

