Ransomware

Bad people want to infect your computer, freeze it, and demand you pay a ransom for its release. In this text, Jesus uses the word "ransom." What does he mean?

The scene has been played out in hundreds of old movies and TV shows: Someone has gone missing. But then a note arrives with the words formed out of letters cut out of old magazines and glued to a page. The note demands a large sum of money, and, in return, the missing person will be released safe -- if not a bit unsound and unnerved.

The kidnappers assumed that it would be virtually impossible to figure out who wrote the letter because no handwriting, typewriting or computer printing was involved.

The truth is, however, that the multi-letter, glued-together ransom note is really more Hollywood than history. Looking at some of the most infamous kidnapping cases in history (like the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby and Patty Hearst), we discover that most high profile ransom notes were handwritten, hastily scrawled for maximum timeliness and impact. This was before the advent of the personal computer, however, and now it's possible to send a ransom note without needing any paper at all.