Fake Bomb Threat Emails Demanding Bitcoins Sparked Chaos Across US, Canada

A massive number of businesses, schools, government offices and
individuals across the US, New Zealand and Canada on Thursday
received bomb threats via emails that caused nationwide chaos,
forcing widespread evacuations and police response.

The bomb threat emails were apparently sent by spammers,
threatening people that someone has planted bombs within their
building that will be detonated unless a bitcoin payment of $20,000
is paid by the end of the business day.

“I write to inform you that my man has carried the bomb (Tetryl)
into the building where your business is located,” one of the
emails posted to social media read.
^[1]

“It was assembled according to my instructions. It can be hidden
anywhere because of its small size, it cannot damage the supporting
building structures, but there will be many victims in case of its
explosion.”

“You must pay me by the end of the working day, and if you are
late with the transaction the bomb will explode.”

“This is just a business, if I do not see the bitcoins and a
bomb detonates, other companies will transfer me more money,
because it isn’t a single case,” the message continued.

However, the threat was appeared to be hoax ransom ploys for
bitcoin payment, numerous law enforcement departments issued
alerts^[2] notifying citizens after
no actual explosives were found.

“We are currently monitoring multiple bomb threats that have
been sent electronically to various locations throughout the city.
These threats are also being reported to other locations nationwide
and are not considered credible at this time,” the New York City
Police Department said.
^[3]

The Hacker News received multiple copies of such emails from its
readers, and the Bitcoin address where the ransom money is to be
sent is different in each message.

It is unclear who is behind these emails, but it’s very similar
to recent sextortion strains where scammers sent emails to victims,
claiming that they had recorded webcam footage of them watching
porn online and demanded ransom payment to prevent the alleged
footage from leaking.

The FBI has launched a query into the matter and also released a
statement in response, saying “we are aware of recent bomb threats
made in cities around the country, and we remain in touch with our
law enforcement partners to provide assistance. As always, we
encourage the public to remain vigilant and to promptly report
suspicious activities which could represent a threat to public
safety.”