Dark Reading Confidential: Meet the Ransomware Negotiators

This Dark Reading podcast explores how professional ransomware negotiators operate, detailing their core objectives (obtaining decryptors, gathering exfiltration intelligence, and buying time), negotiation strategies tailored to specific threat groups, and communication channels used. Guests share real-world anecdotes across sectors (healthcare, nonprofits, education) to illustrate ethical dilemmas, adversary psychology, and risks like re-extortion and brand-driven reliability among groups such as LockBit and BlackCat. The discussion emphasizes the importance of expert-led response, legal and sanctions compliance, insurer and law enforcement coordination, and robust internal intelligence-sharing to improve outcomes.