Bitcoin now the favoured currency for paying ransoms
Bitcoin is reportedly being demanded by criminals as ransoms, replacing cash. According to security firm Sophos, a set of attackers based in Russia and the Ukraine have collected $16.5mn in Bitcoin ransoms from American victims in just over a month. One group, going by the name DD4BC, have been threatening to overwhelm firms' public websites with traffic unless Bitcoin payments are made; FINRA has since urged firms to report any instances of these threats being made to the FBI.
In the old days, criminals liked their ransom payments in briefcases full of unmarked bills.

These days, there’s a new preferred method for hostage takers: the virtual currency Bitcoin.

In a modern day version of a mob shakedown, hackers around the world have seized files on millions of computers, taken down public websites and even, in a few cases, threatened physical harm. The victims — who have ranged from ordinary computer users to financial firms and police departments — are told that their only way out is through a Bitcoin payment that is sometimes more than $20,000.

One set of attackers, believed to be based in Russia and Ukraine, collected about $16.5 million in Bitcoins in a little over a month, primarily from victims in the United States, according to the security firm Sophos.

Criminals like the virtual currency because it can be held in a digital wallet that does not have to be registered with any government or financial authority — and because it can be easily exchanged for real money. At the moment, a single Bitcoin can be sold online or on the street for around $290.