The decision to donate money stolen from a hacking group surprised experts and is considered the first of its kind in the world of cybercrime.
In a Dark Web post, he shared receipts for donating tens of thousands of dollars of Bitcoin to two charities.
One of the organizations, Children International, said it would not keep the money.
The hacking group’s decision is considered legally and morally strange and troubling.
In a blog post on Oct. 13, the group said it was only targeting large for-profit companies. Groups often attack ransomware that is taking corporate IT systems hostage.
(We think it’s fair that some of money companies are donating to charity,) he said.
(No matter how bad you think our work is, we are happy hear that today we have changed someone’s life.) Today we sent our first donations.
In his contribution he also contained the tax receipt and the donation receipt, on which his donation of 0.88 Bitcoins can be seen. Donations went to two organizations, The Water Project and Children International.
A spokesman for Children’s International told the BBC: “If this donation is tied to a hacker, we will not keep it.
The water project deals with access to water in the deserts of Africa. The organization has not yet announced its position on this issue.
Brett Calloway, threat analyst at cybersecurity firm Amesisoft, said, “It’s not clear what these criminals want from this decision. Maybe they want to reduce their guilt. Or maybe they want it. Just look like Robin Hood. ”
(Whatever their motives, this is amazing initiative and, to my knowledge, this is first time a ransomware group has donated to a charity.)
The hacking group called Dark Side is relatively new, but analysis of the cryptocurrency market shows it has repeatedly stolen money from victims.
It has also been proven to have links with other cyber criminals targeting various well-known companies like TravelX in January.
And the way hackers donated money to charity is also an issue for law enforcement.
They use the Giving Block service in the US, which is used by 67 NGOs, including Save the Children, the Rainforest Foundation and She’s the First.
The Giving Block itself is the only company that offers cryptocurrency donations to NGOs.
The Giving Block informed the BBC that it did not know that the donations were made by cyber criminals. (We’re trying to find out if money was really stolen.)
(If it is proven that the money has been stolen, we will initiate return process.)
However, the company didn’t say whether it would return the money to the perpetrators or try to return the money to those whose money was stolen.
The Giving Block also says it is easier to catch them because these people donated with cryptocurrency.
However, the company did not disclose what information the donor had. These services usually capture customer identities, but it is not yet clear what has been done.
As an experiment, the BBC tried to donate anonymously and we were not asked for ID. Experts say the case highlights the complexities and dangers of donating anonymously.
The BBC has also spoken to other charities. Save the Children told the BBC that they would never accept money from sources they knew a crime could have been committed.