Reddit hacked: Hackers demand $4.5 million and API pricing change
What's the story
Reddit's strong message to moderators to end their protest may have had some success, but the company is still not out of troubled waters. In fact, it seems to be in an even bigger pickle than before. A hacker group is threatening to release stolen Reddit data unless the company reverses the upcoming API price hikes and pays a ransom.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Reddit plans to charge third-party apps for access to its API starting July 1. Following the company's announcement, many popular third-party apps, including Apollo and Narhwal, announced their shutdown, citing the potential financial burden. This resulted in a sitewide protest. However, Reddit doubled down on its decision. It needs to be seen whether the threat of a data leak changes the company's stance.
Hacked
Reddit was the victim of a targeted phishing attack
Reddit was the victim of a targeted phishing scheme in February. At the time, the company said hackers accessed internal documents, employee information, and some details about advertisers. It added that there was no evidence of any personal user data being stolen. Until now, no one claimed responsibility for the attack. Now, a ransomware gang named BlackCat, or ALPHV, has come forward.
Threat
BlackCat claims to have 80GB of compressed Reddit data
BlackCat has earned quite the name for itself over the last two years. It is a ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) provider. According to the group, it has 80GB of compressed Reddit data. It, however, did not say what kind of data it has. Its demands are simple: give $4.5 million ransom and reverse the upcoming API pricing change.
Public
BlackCat threatened to leak the data
In a post titled "The Reddit Files," BlackCat says it contacted Reddit twice. "I told them in my first email that I would wait for their IPO to come along. But this seems like the perfect opportunity! We are very confident that Reddit will not pay any money for their data," BlackCat wrote. "We expect to leak the data," the hackers threatened.
Protest
Reddit threatened to replace protesting moderators
Over 8,000 subreddits went dark or private as part of the protest against the platform's new API pricing last week. Many stayed dark even after the 48-hour window. This prompted a stern message from Reddit. It threatened to replace moderators. Many subreddits ended the blackout after that. However, the ransomware gang may not be as easy a target for Reddit.