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Police in Spain have arrested a gang of 11 cyber criminals who used "ransomware" to demand money from thousands of victims in 30 countries. The malware used by the gang froze infected computers and displayed messages that purported to be from police authorities. The messages demanded that the user pay a fine of €100 for accessing file-sharing, child pornography or terrorist sites. Researchers from security firm Trend Micro, which helped find the origin of the malware, said there were 48 different variations of the virus in use. Gathering evidence against ransomware gang Researchers at the security firm have been working with Spanish law enforcement in recent months, providing evidence and intelligence related to the Reveton ransomware. Trend Micro said early versions of the malware first surfaced in Russia in 2005, but the gang refined it so that it would display police logos appropriate to the victim's country of residence. Through mapping the criminal network infrastructure, including traffic redirection and command and ...