TOI reports: Jaipur: In what is suspected to be the first case of ransomware infecting a system in the state, a city-based charted accountant was hit by hackers who encrypted files on his computers and demanded money in Bitcoins to decrypt the files. They also threatened to corrupt the data if he failed to pay…
Category: Malware
SamSam ransomware infects Colorado Department of Transportation
Luana Pascu reports: SamSam ransomware is back and the Colorado Department of Transportation is its most recent victim. More than 2,000 agency computers had to be shut down on Feb 21 to prevent the ransomware from spreading across the entire infrastructure. According to CBS local news, the critical systems used to manage road traffic and…
Hacker Strikes ‘Stalkerware’ Companies, Stealing Alleged Texts and GPS Locations of Customers
Joseph Cox reports: A hacker has broken into two consumer spyware companies—firms which sell malware to everyday people, sometimes with the explicit intent of illegally spying on spouses or lovers—and provided a large cache of data to Motherboard. The data includes gigabytes of customer records, apparent business information, and alleged intercepted messages of some people…
PA: City of Allentown computer systems hit by virus that may require an expensive fix
Daniel Patrick Sheehan and Emily Opilo report: The City of Allentown has been hit by a serious computer virus that is affecting an array of systems, with some shut down as a precaution while a team of outside experts tries to fix the problem. City spokesman Mike Moore said the malware, which has the potential…
NC: County computers shut down by ransomware
Ben Coley reports: The Davidson County government’s ability to conduct business on computers has been stopped by a software virus known as ransomware, according to County Manager Zeb Hanner. Hanner said officials learned about the issue around 2 a.m. Friday. He noted that all the files are encrypted and that the hackers are asking for…
UK and US blame Russia for ‘malicious’ NotPetya cyber-attack
BBC reports: The Russian military was directly behind a “malicious” cyber-attack on Ukraine that spread globally last year, the US and Britain have said. The White House said June’s NotPetya ransomware attack caused billions of dollars in damage across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. UK Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said Russia was “ripping up the…