Criminal gang extorts Bitcoin ransom from Thai bank

According to the British People's Daily, a hacker group calling itself "Invincible Armada" issued an ultimatum to at least four Thai banks, saying that if the banks did not pay a certain amount of Bitcoin as a ransom, they would launch a cyber attack on the banks.

     The details of the incident are still unknown. According to Thailand's famous English newspaper The Nation , the hacker criminal group involved in this incident is called "Invincible Armada". The group issued an ultimatum to at least four Thai banks via email.

     The report also pointed out that the "Invincible Armada" also blackmailed a Swiss hosting provider in September, demanding 20 bitcoins (about $6,000). If the hosting provider does not meet the hacker's demands, the hackers will attack their network and cause their transactions to decline at a rate of 20 bitcoins per day.

     In the ultimatum, the hacker group also warned the banks that they would be subject to endless cyber attacks if they reported the extortion to the media.

     The Thai government has banned Bitcoin. However, the reality is that the Bank of Thailand has no authority to regulate Bitcoin because Bitcoin is not classified as a foreign currency and Bitcoin.co.th is very active in Bitcoin trading in Thailand without being regulated.