Could Ransomware Be Driving Up Bitcoin Prices?

[btc78]

Research is suggesting that the number of ransomware incidents has risen in 2019. The payment method of choice for the majority of this cybercrime is cryptocurrency, predominantly bitcoin. Could BTC price fluctuations be linked to the increase in this online nefarious activity?

https://bitcoinist.com/could-ransomware-be-driving-up-bitcoin-prices/

Why everything that happens in the world need to be connected in bitcoin or cryptocurrency?does ransomware incidents really require bitcoin as payments.?but what I learn is ransomware cybercrime is mostly victimizing crypto investors since it’s. Easy to transact and easy payments also

[hypersonic1]

Sadly i'm pretty sure that ransomware is diminishing the price of mBitcoin and allowing critics to point towards such activities in order to drive the price down and avoid regulation.

[Ferris419]

Ransomware is harming the reputation of Bitcoin. Two years ago, I lost my everything by a ransomware attack and they asked me to pay 500 USD in Bitcoin, there was no another option to pay them. This year it attacked one of my facebook friends PC, and he was very sad that Bitcoin is using by these criminals. I don't think Ransomware can driving up Bitcoin price anyhow.

[Wintersoldier]

Research is suggesting that the number of ransomware incidents has risen in 2019. The payment method of choice for the majority of this cybercrime is cryptocurrency, predominantly bitcoin. Could BTC price fluctuations be linked to the increase in this online nefarious activity?

https://bitcoinist.com/could-ransomware-be-driving-up-bitcoin-prices/

It still depends, since not all of the victims are paying, most of them are just formatting their computer and let the files be gone. But when it comes to big companies that needs the files, they are bound to accept their fate, except those that are just new, when the solution for the ransomeware was created. Meaning to say that not much effect has been impacted the market because of this reason.

[Ucy]

Might be true. Victims of this ransomware are forcing them to pay in Bitcoin.

Yeah but the quantities of bitcoin are probably not enough to affect the price in a meaningful way.  I would also point out that bitcoin prices have *not* been driven up lately.  It's been just the opposite, and anybody would know this with a quick look at a 1 year bitcoin price chart.

There was a thread about this a couple years ago if I'm remembering it correctly.  And as I said, whatever ransom these extortionists/criminals are asking, even if the victim had to buy bitcoin on the open market the number of bitcoins isn't enough to drive the price anywhere.  I'm sure if they had to pay something like 100,000BTC that might be true, but nobody is asking that for a ransom.

The thieves clearly do not influence the price especially recent price.

I hope it becomes possible to blacklist those addresses immediately once they are discovered. I wouldn't even mind if the addresses are frozen immediately via some sort of quick community consensus. If no one comes to claim the bitcoin, it can then be handed over to security agencies.
 It would be good to have forum-like platform where those who feel their coins were unjustly frozen can provide proves for the community to decide whether to unfreeze the coins.
I guess this hasn't been considered because it could be abused in the future.

[oleg681010]

I think they can, but slightly, it is unlikely that they can change the price of bitcoin so much

[bhabygrim]

Research is suggesting that the number of ransomware incidents has risen in 2019. The payment method of choice for the majority of this cybercrime is cryptocurrency, predominantly bitcoin. Could BTC price fluctuations be linked to the increase in this online nefarious activity?

https://bitcoinist.com/could-ransomware-be-driving-up-bitcoin-prices/

Well it could be one reason why the price increased in this year.
The people who are victim of this ransomware could be a non crypto person so if there are so many victims then this would be a fresh money for the market and the price would surely move.
Just think about how much ransom that the victim would pay and how many of them are going to instantly buy it in order to get their computer free.

[pjcaruci]

I do not think that anyone can significantly affect the price of bitcoin

[blckhawk]

Research is suggesting that the number of ransomware incidents has risen in 2019. The payment method of choice for the majority of this cybercrime is cryptocurrency, predominantly bitcoin. Could BTC price fluctuations be linked to the increase in this online nefarious activity?

https://bitcoinist.com/could-ransomware-be-driving-up-bitcoin-prices/

I don't think people paying in BTC is enough for the price fluctuations we see today. Besides, the price today isn't really doing good. The OP has a point but I don't think it's enough factor that could drive the price up. It's still mainly by whales, or by trading which is primarily affected by news and such. I also don't think that it would do any good even if BTC is introduced to innocent victims via these ransomwares, because most likely, the victims would remember BTC in a negative way, as used in illegal activities.