German police name alleged leaders of GandCrab and REvil ransomware groups

Use of the term “doxxing”

• Major debate over whether unmasking ransomware operators via a police wanted notice counts as “doxxing.”
• Some argue “doxxing” originally meant linking an anonymous handle to a real identity for law-enforcement purposes, so this usage fits.
• Others say the modern sense implies extra-legal harassment, malicious intent, or overexposure of private data, so an official warrant isn’t “doxxing.”
• Several note semantic drift: the word now often means any unwanted identity disclosure, which causes confusion.

Ethics, law, and privacy

• One camp: identifying serious cybercriminals is morally justified; publishing names that aid capture is “good.”
• Another camp warns against equating legality with morality and outsourcing ethics to the state; rights (including privacy) don’t vanish just because someone is accused.
• Disagreement over whether accused criminals retain a strong expectation of privacy; some say limited disclosure by law enforcement is legitimate, others frame it as a “least bad” use of state power.

Ransomware as “real crime”

• Most see ransomware as clearly immoral and harmful: destroying businesses, costing jobs, and raising costs across the economy.
• A minority voice downplays harm when targeting large, insured companies and even claims threat actors “create jobs”; others rebut this as broken-window economics.

Wanted lists vs harassment risks

• Some insist that tying an alias to a real name on a wanted list is just normal policing, not “doxxing.”
• Others note real-world risks once a wealthy criminal’s identity is public: theft, extortion, impersonation of officials, or vigilante actions.
• Concern that both vigilantes and states can misidentify people, with past online “investigations” cited as cautionary examples.

German context: CCC, laws, and agencies

• Mention that hackers affiliated with the Chaos Computer Club had allegedly unmasked at least one operator earlier; unclear if police used that work.
• Noted tension and distrust between CCC-style hackers and German intelligence; cooperation is seen as reputationally risky.
• Discussion of Germany’s strict “Hackerparagraph” and how it chills white-hat work, though courts interpret it narrowly and reforms are being debated.

Broader concerns about rule of law and language

• Some worry HN comments are drifting toward dismissing law enforcement entirely when laws are disliked.
• Others emphasize the need for nuance: accepting gray areas while maintaining overall respect for rule of law.
• Language itself (e.g., “doxxing,” “criminal”) is seen as politically and morally loaded, affecting how actions are judged.