P. H. Madore reports: Boston public defenders suffered a ransomware attack some weeks back but have chosen not to send the bitcoin demanded by the attacker. Instead, they decided to use back-ups to restore services. The Committee oversees public defenders in Boston. According to the Boston Globe, that decision has meant a “weekslong slowdown” that…
Category: Malware
UK: Dorset school targeted in suspected ransomware attack
Cormac Connelly-Smith reports: Students at a Dorset secondary school have had their GCSE coursework held hostage by hackers. It is believed the Sir John Colfox Academy in Bridport was targeted by a ransomware attack, which locks victims out of their personal files unless they pay hackers to unlock them. The last major ransomware attack was…
Ballard NW Senior Center attacked by ransomware ahead of annual fundraiser
DeeDee Sun reports: The Ballard Northwest Senior Center found itself in the bull’s-eye of ransomware attack, with its server wiped just weeks before their biggest fundraiser of the year. The senior center says it doesn’t know if it was targeted, or if the ransomware attack hit them at random, but now it’s struggling to get…
Cyberattacker demands ransom from Northern Colorado utility
Pat Ferrier reports: When employees of the Fort Collins Loveland Water District and South Fort Collins Sanitation District got to work the morning of Feb. 11, they were locked out of technical and engineering data and drawings stored on their computers. The districts had fallen victim to a ransomware cyber attack, the second in two years, General Manager…
Maffi Clinic notifies 10,465 after ransomware incident
On September 11, 2018, Maffi Clinics in Arizona joined the ranks of those attacked by ransomware. From their notification letter (see below), it appears that the clinic was prepared and quickly implemented their incident response plan. The consulting firm promptly identified the unauthorized access point and terminated it; isolated and removed the ransomware; and restored…
Delaware Guidance Services notifies 50,000 parents and guardians after ransomware incident
On February 26, Delaware Guidance Services for Children and Youth, Inc. (“DGS”) sent a letter to parents and guardians of their young patients. The letter explained that on December 25, 2018, DGS had become the victim of a ransomware attack that had locked up the patient records. Those records contained personal information, such as name,…