Criminal wannabes even more dangerous than the pros, says ex-FBI cyber chief

Cynthia Kaiser of Halcyon’s Ransomware Research Center describes recent active ransomware activity: an Iran-linked Pay2Key intrusion that rapidly encrypted a US healthcare organization (appearing destructive rather than for data extortion), lightning-fast financially motivated groups like Akira that can reach full encryption in hours or less, and low-skill but destructive actors like Sicarii whose flawed implementations create irreversible damage; the report highlights reduced dwell time, improved anti-detection and recovery mechanisms, and concerns about AI increasing the volume of attacks and risks to critical services.