Ransomware isn’t always about the money: Government spies have objectives, too www.theregister.com/2025/02/1…

Feature Ransomware gangsters and state-sponsored online spies fall on opposite ends of the cyber-crime spectrum.

The former move fast, make a lot of noise, and then intentionally draw attention to say “Hi, we’ve broken into your network,” usually sending the victim some encrypted files and a ransom note.

The latter often play the long game, moving stealthily and making seemingly innocuous moves to maintain a silent presence on your network, allowing them to snoop for as long as possible.

Over the summer the FBI and CISA warned that Iran’s Pioneer Kitten had been breaking into buggy VPNs and firewall devices to steal data and drop ransomware. But, according to the feds, this government-backed group’s recent attacks were financially motivated — not state-sanctioned.