A new era in crime was ushered in 2008 when anonymous kidnappers kidnapped Barbara Henning, the wife of filmstar Nick Piazzi, during a vacation in Mexico. They sent video footage anonymously over the net and demanded 20 million dollars in digital cash for her release. After much searching and several wrenching threats Nick Piazzi against the police's advice gave in to the demands and paid. A few days later Barbara was released. While some evidence could be gathered from the kidnapping scene and from her story, the kidnappers and the money was never found.
This was the start of a series of net-mediated kidnappings worldwide. By kidnapping a victim (or in some cases stealing valuables or spreading encrypting viruses) and then using the anonymity mechanisms of the net and untraceable digital cash, it became possible to do the perfect crime. In practice these napsters, as the media dubbed them, often made mistakes that enabled the police to find them.
The Democratic Europe Party began as an anti-internationalist activist/terrorist group during the 00's, striking against what they considered evil globalists and Big Business. In 2013 they began using napster tactics to fund themselves, quickly becoming very good at it. They performed at least 4 kidnappings of business executives and politicians 2013-2019, leaving very few traces. As time went on their methods became more sophisticated, enabling payments put in escrow so that their victims would be released once a certain amount of money had been paid by interested parties. In the case of the 2019 kidnapping of the populist politician Peer de Sain this enabled them to reach their ransom simply by having concerned citizens and anonymous donors pay.
In 2020 they kidnapped Dr Klaus W. Tannenbaum, a noted and controversial genetics researcher, and demanded their ransom. This time another anonymous group put up a counterbid: it promised to pay 20% more than the ransom if they killed him. It is believed a cryptographic protocol was set up between the parties enabling a completely anonymous linkage of escrows, and after five months the corpse of the doctor was discovered near Innsbruck. Neither the DEP or the other group was found, although it is likely that the other group was linked to the militant anti-research activists that were already harassing him.
This marked the start of DEP's "bid for life" - they would kidnap people and allow anonymous depositions of digital money in escrow either for a release or for killing the victim. Since friends and supporters of the victim did not know how much money had been deposited against the victim, they would be motivated to pay - and opponents would be motivated in the same way. By making the kidnapping appear in the media large numbers of friendly individuals could be made to pay small sums to a release regardless of advice from police and antiterrorist organisations.
While many other terrorist and criminal groups have adapted the "bid for life" approach, DEP remains the only group that has consistently suceeded in using it without getting caught. Even when three former members were arrested in Spain 2028 little was learned, as they were killed in prison under mysterious circumstances.
The organisation is believed to be composed of cells that never or seldom meet in physical reality, keeping in touch using strong cryptography. The amassed capital is used to maintain efficient and secure international connections, likely involving state of the art equipment and hiring unknowing consultants for preparatory work.