David Décary-Hétu Associate Professor, Université de Montréal
Prof. David Décary-Hétu has a Ph.D. in criminology from the Université de Montréal (2013). He first started as a Senior Scientist at the School of Criminal Sciences of the Université de Lausanne before moving to his current position as an Associate Professor at the School of Criminology of the Université de Montréal. The main research interests of Prof. Décary-Hétu focus on the impacts of technology on crime. Through his innovative approach based on big and small data, as well as social network analysis, Prof. Décary-Hétu studies how offenders adopt and use technologies, and how that shapes the regulation of offenses, as well as how researchers can study offenders and offenses. Prof. Décary-Hétu is the Deputy Director of the International Centre for Comparative Criminology (ICCC), the Chair of the Division of Cybercrime of the American Society of Criminology and the Chair of the Darknet and Anonymity Research Centre (DARC) that was funded by the John R. Evans Leaders Funds from the Canada Foundation for Innovation. His team collects and studies data from all types of offenders who use anonymity technologies such as the darkweb, cryptocurrencies and encryption. Prof. Décary-Hétu has received funding from both public and private grantors operating at the local, provincial, federal and international level. He has published in leading academic journals and is invited regularly in the news media to comment on recent events.
Talk: Nice to meet you! That will be 20 million please
Talks will be streamed on YouTube and Twitch for free.
A ransomware attack isn’t just a technical compromise of a company; it’s also a game of negotiation and perhaps even chess. In this talk, I plunge into 133 recorded conversations and more than 7,000 messages exchanged between ransomware gangs and their victims, unraveling the narrative of cyber extortion. This is an insider’s look at how these dark operators blend intimidation, persuasive rhetoric, and even a twisted sense of humor to secure their demands. I dive deep into the qualitative nuances of these dialogues, decoding the linguistic tricks, psychological maneuvers, and power dynamics that define the art of ransomware negotiation. Each conversation is a case study in negotiation that flows between capitulation and defiance, where subtle cues and strategic language can be the difference between a quick surrender and a prolonged standoff. Furthermore, I integrate comprehensive data detailing who paid their ransom, how much, and under what circumstances to construct a predictive model that exposes the critical factors influencing ransom decisions. This model not only sheds light on the financial and behavioral patterns of cybercriminal interactions but also unearths trends that could forecast future threats. By examining variables such as company size, industry type, and security stance, I reveal a multifaceted picture of vulnerability and response. Beyond the numbers and narratives, the talk will present real conversations to clearly show how these conversations unfold. With this data-driven roadmap, my aim is to better prepare companies and individuals facing the all too common ransomware attack, and to empower defenders, incident responders, and policymakers with actionable strategies designed to disrupt these criminal networks and mitigate future threats.