According to the 2025 crypto crime report published by blockchain analytics company Chainalysis, ransomware payments dropped 35% to $813 million in 2024 from $1.25 billion the year before.
Even while the amount of money stolen by cybercriminals increased in the first half of 2024, payments significantly decreased in the second half, leading to a decline overall.
The steps taken against cryptocurrency exchanges that hackers use to launder money have been partly blamed for the drop in ransomware payments. The ability of ransomware groups to convert their cryptocurrency into fiat has been hampered by sanctions against the Russia-based Cryptex exchange and the German Federal Criminal Police's seizure of 47 non-KYC cryptocurrency exchanges in the Russian language.
Ransomware operators are exhibiting unprecedented restraint in cashing out, according to Jacqueline Burns Koven, Head of Cyber Threat Intelligence at Chainalysis. This is probably because they are more afraid of being found and prosecuted with the help of crypto investigation tools.
Additionally, Chainalysis noticed an increasing pattern of ransomware victims refusing to comply with requests. The difference between the ransom sums asked and the actual payments made in the second half of 2024 was 53%, despite a rise in ransomware attacks. This implies that more victims are refusing to pay, as those who do give between $150,000 and $250,000 on average.
According to the research, there has been a notable change in the cybersecurity landscape, with the drop in ransom payments attributable to increased victim resistance to ransom demands, enhanced international collaboration, and the influence of law enforcement initiatives.
According to Koven, the fact that payments have dropped to levels below those of 2020 and 2021 shows how successful these steps are in averting what was once thought to be the end of the world due to ransomware.
Even while the amount of money stolen by cybercriminals increased in the first half of 2024, payments significantly decreased in the second half, leading to a decline overall.
The steps taken against cryptocurrency exchanges that hackers use to launder money have been partly blamed for the drop in ransomware payments. The ability of ransomware groups to convert their cryptocurrency into fiat has been hampered by sanctions against the Russia-based Cryptex exchange and the German Federal Criminal Police's seizure of 47 non-KYC cryptocurrency exchanges in the Russian language.
Ransomware operators are exhibiting unprecedented restraint in cashing out, according to Jacqueline Burns Koven, Head of Cyber Threat Intelligence at Chainalysis. This is probably because they are more afraid of being found and prosecuted with the help of crypto investigation tools.
Additionally, Chainalysis noticed an increasing pattern of ransomware victims refusing to comply with requests. The difference between the ransom sums asked and the actual payments made in the second half of 2024 was 53%, despite a rise in ransomware attacks. This implies that more victims are refusing to pay, as those who do give between $150,000 and $250,000 on average.
According to the research, there has been a notable change in the cybersecurity landscape, with the drop in ransom payments attributable to increased victim resistance to ransom demands, enhanced international collaboration, and the influence of law enforcement initiatives.
According to Koven, the fact that payments have dropped to levels below those of 2020 and 2021 shows how successful these steps are in averting what was once thought to be the end of the world due to ransomware.
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