IANAL, but I believe the reason why it remains legal to pay a ransom for the return of kidnapped loved is because criminalization would be unconstitutional. Like it or not, I believe the same is true for ransomware.
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Replying to @jeremiahg
One wrinkle in paying a ransom is if the bad actor is on the OFAC or terrorist lists, it’s a federal crime.

May 7, 2021 · 2:44 PM UTC

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Replying to @bilcorry
yeah, there are sometimes those edge cases.
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I attended a talk by the DOJ about it. It’s a very sharp edge case. Their advice is to proactively reach out before you make the payment to someone on those lists.