ransomware meaning: definition, etymology and quotations

ransomware

noun

Etymology From ransom + -ware.

Malware that holds the data of a computer user for ransom, usually requiring or claiming to require payment to restore access.

Computer security

The amount of money generated by ransomware schemes would appear to be quite small given their lack of popularity and the asking price in ransom notes […]2008, Markus Jakobsson, Zulfikar Ramzan, Crimeware: Understanding New Attacks and Defenses, page 375:
Garmin has been forced to shut down its call centres, website and some other online services after a ransomware attack encrypted the smartwatch maker’s internal network and some production systems.2020 July 24, Mark Sweney, “Smartwatch maker Garmin hit by outages after ransomware attack”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 24 Feb 2022:

2 more examples

Last March, Trenitalia, the Italian state-owned railway, suffered a major ransomware attack on its ticketing system, which disrupted sales at stations as well as passenger information screens.2023 March 22, Christian Wolmar, “Cybersecurity concerns highlight a range of potential risks”, in RAIL, number 979, page 33:
Cybersecurity firm Semperis found that 86% of surveyed organizations in the United States, United Kingdom, France and Germany that faced ransomware attacks were targeted on a holiday or weekend.2024 November 25, Sean Lyngaas, “Starbucks forced to pay its baristas manually because of a ransomware attack on third-party software”, in CNN Business, archived from the original on 27 Nov 2024:

Derogatory Software that is released as open source only in exchange for payment.

Computer security

[I]n some situations, the source code of COTS may be escrowed and released under a free software or open source license when the original developer (or supplier) no longer continues to develop that software or if stipulated fundraising conditions are met. This model is referred to as the ransom model of software publishing and the software is known as ransomware.2013, Mano Paul, Official (ISC)2 Guide to the CSSLP CBK, Second Edition, page 622: