Max Smeets

Max Smeets is the Co-Director of Virtual Routes and Senior Researcher at ETH Zürich. He is the author of Ransom War: How Cybercrime became a Threat to National Security (2025), and No Shortcuts: Why States Struggle to Develop a Military Cyber-Force (2022). He also serves as Managing Editor of Binding Hook, a media outlet on technology and security published by Virtual Routes.

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Talk: Ransomware, Unfiltered

This talk is based on exclusive data shared by the UK’s National Crime Agency following Operation Cronos, the global disruption of LockBit. It is the first time these findings are being presented. The talk provides a unique view of LockBit’s operations and helps assess the true impact of Cronos when compared with the recent public LockBit leak. It also offers new insights into the link between ransom payments and exposure risk, contradicting prevailing views.