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America's 21st Century Machiavellian Moment
No Ransomware, Part 1
1. The Crypto Currencies Represents a Clear Threat to Our Nation
The Preamble to the Constitution states thusly:
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
Our nation is now threatened by a foreign invasion, not by immigrants from Latin America, nor by an invading military from any other nation state, but by a silent army of criminals motivated by and financed by crypto currencies. Ransomware now attacks our people; our schools; our institutions of government; our hospitals; and even the machinery of everyday living like our supplies of water and energy. All these institutions that make up our civic life are threatened on a seemingly daily basis by these invading criminals.
We The People are constantly reminded of how defenseless we seem to be in the face of these dire threats to our nation and well-being. Individually, that may well be true. Collectively, however, We The People do indeed have the power over time to end this scourge of ransomware. If the major powers in this world, through their various financial institutions of all types, would simply declare that crypto currencies will no longer be considered negotiable currency for the exchange of goods and services within their respective economies, there would soon be no profit motive for ransomware criminals to continue their devastating crime sprees.
The ransomware crisis demands that our government and economic institutions return to the first principles upon which this nation was founded and enumerated in The Preamble to the United States Constitution. As a nation, we must decide and act to
1. Establish Justice.
2. Insure domestic Tranquility.
3.
Provide for the common defense.
4. Promote the general Welfare.
The ransomware crisis demands that Justice be established so that we do not live in fear of opening an email. There can be no domestic tranquility when our hospitals can not treat ill seniors and children alike. Only our government and large institutions can provide for the common defense against these international criminal organizations. The general welfare of all Americans continue to be threatened by the ongoing attacks on our critical infrastructure upon which we all depend. This war on all Western societies must end. And the first necessary salvo to end this war must be the elimination of the profit motive that drives these crimes against societies by making crypto currencies not worth the bytes of data upon which they are made.
2. The Extent of the Problem of Ransomware.
It cannot be denied that ransomware has become the single greatest
threat our nation has face since the beginning of the Second
World War.
Every day comes news of another attack on one or more entities critical
to our nation's well-being. Indeed, the numbers are staggering.
I chose to focus mostly on the impact of the healthcare industry because all Americans are consumers of healthcare goods and services. When these industries do not function as they should, people suffer actual harms.
The chart to the right is from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's 2023 Internet Crime Report. "In 2023, the IC3 received 2,825 complaints identified as ransomware with adjusted losses of more than $59.6 million." That is 59.6 million dollars removed from the American economy last year alone.
In 2023, there were 249 ransomware attacks on the Healthcare sector. These attacks certainly represent losses of capital. Nevertheless, these attacks also may cause your child; your senior citizen; maybe even you from not receiving necessary medical treatment while the attack is ongoing. In a report dated October 23, 2023, Comparitech.com estimated that since 2016 the losses due to ransomware in the Healthcare sector alone are estimated to be "around US$77.5 billion in downtime alone." This amount does not include any ransoms actually paid. This is what it costs to have healthcare facilities not functioning.
The much publicized attack on Change Healthcare has had devastating impacts on medical providers nationwide, and continues to do so. In Nevada alone, 3 weeks now into the attack, patients and providers both continue to suffer the fallout from this latest ransomware attack on our Healthcare sector. A report from a Las Vegas Fox News Affiliate, dated Mar. 6, 2024, lists some of the problems Nevada health providers currently face. "Cancer Care Specialists said problems began weeks ago, when patients reported trouble getting their prescriptions from their local pharmacy." Dr. Sowjanya Reganti, who is also the president of the Nevada State Medical Association, explained how this attack is affecting the treatment of cancer patients in the Silver State. “Some of these drugs are chemotherapy drugs that they have to get from specialty pharmacies. We’ve been just trying to find ways to get some help for them..."
A HIPPA Journal reported March 7, 2024, stated "At least 5 class action lawsuits have already been filed in Tennessee and Minnesota over the Change Healthcare data breach and that number is expected to grow considerably over the coming days, weeks, and months." According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, March 6, 2024, a California man filed a lawsuit in Minnesota District Court. In its article on the case, the Star Tribune reported that, "the victim says he was told that, because of the problem, he'd have had to pay full price for his medication and pursue an insurance claim after the fact. The plaintiff "is hesitant to pursue further medical care until he is assured that his information has been secured and his insurance coverage will be accepted," the lawsuit says. Unmet health needs, like those experienced by the California plaintiff, are a clear and present danger that confronts all Americans as ransomware attacks continue.
All of this criminal activity is carried out only with crypto currencies. CHAINALYSIS, a website that tracks crimes involving crypto currencies, reported February 7, 2024, that worldwide losses to ransomware rose to $1.18 billion dollars. "Ransomware payments in 2023 surpassed the $1 billion mark, the highest number ever observed," reported CHAINALYSIS, in its 2024 Crypto Crime Report. The researchers noted that, "The ransomware landscape is not only prolific but continually expanding, making it challenging to monitor every incident or trace all ransom payments made in cryptocurrencies." That 1.18 billion dollars removed from the world's economies and transferred to some of this planet's most dangerous threat actors is only what is known. The actual amount of losses cannot be readily ascertained.
Thus, we can clearly surmise that if crypto currencies were not fungible — could not be used to pay for goods and services anywhere in the developed world — then the profit motive to commit these crimes would vanish, along with the majority of the attacks themselves.
Gerald Reiff
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