Cyber Gang Ceases Extortion of British Kindergartens Following Public Outcry

A cybercriminal group has reportedly halted its extortion scheme targeting a British kindergarten operator after widespread public outrage. The group, which identifies itself as Radiant, had breached the systems of Kido Schools and threatened to publish sensitive photos and data of approximately 8,000 children on the dark web if their demands were not met.

Initially, the criminals began releasing profiles of individual children to pressure the operator into paying a ransom. Reports indicate that they even contacted affected parents directly to escalate the pressure for payment. However, faced with significant public backlash, the gang appears to have changed their course of action. They first blurred the images they had obtained and have now claimed to have deleted all the stolen data, along with issuing an apology.

Kido Schools operates numerous kindergartens across the UK, the US, and India, though it has been reported that only its UK facilities were targeted in this cyber attack. According to the BBC, the Radiant group did not gain access to Kido's systems independently but rather purchased the access from another cybercriminal. The group sought to extort more than EUR110,000 in Bitcoin.

Law enforcement agencies in London have initiated investigations into the incident, although progress has been limited thus far. Cybersecurity expert Jen Ellis suggests that the gang's decision to cease the extortion effort may not be rooted in moral reasons as claimed, but rather due to the unexpected attention their actions garnered. It is believed that Radiant is now attempting to mitigate the damage to its reputation.

Verification of the deletion of the stolen data remains uncertain, and while Kido Schools reportedly did not pay the ransom, the potential financial loss for the gang raises questions about their operational capabilities. Additional reports suggest that Radiant may lack experience in executing such cyber extortion schemes effectively.