From cipher to fear: The psychology behind modern ransomware extortion

From cipher to fear: The psychology behind modern ransomware extortion Source: BleepingComputer www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/secu… For years, security teams treated ransomware primarily as a technological problem. Defensive strategies focused on hardening backup systems, deploying endpoint detection capabilities, rehearsing incident response playbooks centred on data recovery, and reducing attack surface to prevent initial access. By 2025, this approach has become increasingly ineffective. Modern ransomware operations have evolved beyond simple file encryption into highly systematized extortion campaigns that leverage stolen data, regulatory and legal exposure, and sustained psychological pressure at scale. As a result, the traditional remediation model of restoring from backup is no longer sufficient. Organizations must now be prepared to address data exposure, legal and regulatory liability, and reputational damage as core elements of their ransomware response strategy.