One interesting counter point here is that the money hasn't disappeared. Literally every cent that has been paid to one of these Bitcoin addresses can be traced through all future purchases by anyone on the internet. The money will, of course, be combined with other amounts as transactions occur but that doesn't kill the trail. If any of it does end up in a wallet which a government can tie to a real person, an investigator can start working backwards. This is no different from marked bills in a more traditional ransom payment. Not perfect, but proven effective.
Checks and money orders have to be cashed...
Im not ranting against anything, just a curiosity...
[...]
By August 2012, a new variant of Reveton began to spread in the United States, claiming to require the payment of a $200 fine to the FBI using a MoneyPak card.
[...]
Rather surprisingly, Fusob suggests using iTunes gift cards for payment." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ransomware
Apparently at least Ukash, Paysafecard, MoneyPak card, and iTunes gift cards have all been used.
edit:
>any number of ways
what about zero?