--- title: When the Responder Is the Threat — Ransomware... description: A ransomware negotiator named Angelo Martino pleaded guilty in April 2026 to conspiring with BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware operators, leaking victims' insurance... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/when-the-responder-is-the-threat-ransomware-negotiators-insider-trust-and-incident-response-ethi-uihkw4d9m twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: When the Responder Is the Threat — Ransomware Negotiators, Insider Trust, and Incident Response Ethics | daily.dev og:description: A ransomware negotiator named Angelo Martino pleaded guilty in April 2026 to conspiring with BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware operators, leaking victims' insurance... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/when-the-responder-is-the-threat-ransomware-negotiators-insider-trust-and-incident-response-ethi-uihkw4d9m og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/uIhKW4D9M.png og:image:alt: When the Responder Is the Threat — Ransomware Negotiators, Insider Trust, and Incident Response Ethics og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # When the Responder Is the Threat — Ransomware Negotiators, Insider Trust, and Incident Response Ethics **[Security Boulevard](https://daily.dev/sources/securityboulevard)** · 12 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary A ransomware negotiator named Angelo Martino pleaded guilty in April 2026 to conspiring with BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware operators, leaking victims' insurance limits and negotiating strategies to attackers while posing as their defender. The case exposes systemic governance failures in incident response. Ten concrete recommendations are outlined: enforce segregation of duties across negotiation, forensics, legal, and payment functions; log all threat-actor communications with supervisory review; limit disclosure of insurance information; vet responders before incidents occur; rewrite engagement letters to address conflicts and side payments; treat responder access as need-to-know; maintain OFAC sanctions discipline; report attacks to law enforcement; and build a professional ethics culture for the cybersecurity industry. The core argument is that uncontrolled trust in incident response is negligence, not prudence. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [Schneier on Security](https://daily.dev/posts/schneier-on-security-dg6awk8ta) · Schneier on Security · 3 upvotes · 0 comments - [Florida ransomware negotiator convicted for helping ransomware gang extort US companies](https://daily.dev/posts/florida-ransomware-negotiator-convicted-for-helping-ransomware-gang-extort-us-companies-32hdpvzug) · TechCrunch · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Former ransomware negotiator gets 4 years for BlackCat attacks](https://daily.dev/posts/former-ransomware-negotiator-gets-4-years-for-blackcat-attacks-gtuvnnv8s) · BleepingComputer · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [TDL 008 \| Defending the Frontline: Ransomware, AI, and Real-World Lessons](https://daily.dev/posts/tdl-008-defending-the-frontline-ransomware-ai-and-real-world-lessons-9xlpsddaq) · Security Boulevard · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#ransomware](https://daily.dev/tags/ransomware) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/when-the-responder-is-the-threat-ransomware-negotiators-insider-trust-and-incident-response-ethi-uihkw4d9m) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"When the Responder Is the Threat — Ransomware Negotiators, Insider Trust, and Incident Response Ethics","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/when-the-responder-is-the-threat-ransomware-negotiators-insider-trust-and-incident-response-ethi-uihkw4d9m","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/when-the-responder-is-the-threat-ransomware-negotiators-insider-trust-and-incident-response-ethi-uihkw4d9m"},"datePublished":"2026-07-23T08:18:47.842Z","dateModified":"2026-07-23T08:19:11.518Z","description":"A ransomware negotiator named Angelo Martino pleaded guilty in April 2026 to conspiring with BlackCat/ALPHV ransomware operators, leaking victims' insurance...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/a73fbff783a09a6a3388460928cf4cca?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/a73fbff783a09a6a3388460928cf4cca?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Security Boulevard","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Security Boulevard","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/3613c832180040de8d85bb29f74395be","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/securityboulevard"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/when-the-responder-is-the-threat-ransomware-negotiators-insider-trust-and-incident-response-ethi-uihkw4d9m","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"ransomware","timeRequired":"PT12M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Security Boulevard","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/securityboulevard"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"When the Responder Is the Threat — Ransomware Negotiators, Insider Trust, and Incident Response Ethics"}]} ```