Ransomware has been making the rounds in American states, taking out various government offices in exchange for large payments of Bitcoin. However, the latest attack hit the state of Georgia’s judiciary system with a particular nasty strain of ransomware. As the attack began to unfold, countless scores of systems became encrypted and a note appeared in the system from the hackers. The note demanded that the government gets in touch with the hackers so they can set their demands in exchange for returning the systems back to normal.
Not Georgia’s First Rodeo
Georgia isn’t a stranger to ransomware attacks, as last year the state suffered a severe attack. Hackers brought down the municipal court’s systems for 3 agonizing months, with people being unable to pay traffic violations for a further 6 months. The team over at state government knows exactly how to deal with ransomware attackers and has already formulated a plan. It has taken all of the states government systems offline for the time being while the damage is assessed. For now, it appears as if not data has been leaked or stolen, a good sign for the public.
Florida Hit Just Weeks Ago
Just a handful of weeks ago, the Riviera Beach, FL, local council was hit by a ransomware attack after a police officer opened a strange looking attachment from an email. Hackers demanded 65 Bitcoin in order to unlock the systems and decrypt all of the council’s files – a huge sum of money. Thankfully, insurance will cover most of the costs, but this type of attack is becoming common place in America.
A Worrying Breed of Ransomware
Unlike the type used in Florida, the specimen picked up from Georgia is a worrying design. Known in tech circles as SamSam, rather than needing to be opened by an unsuspecting victim, the ransomware finds its own backdoors and security flaws – meaning anyone could be hit. SamSam hunts around to look for weak passwords and open ports that should be closed for a way into the system. Once it’s in there is no stopping it other than by shutting everything down.
Ransomware attacks are becoming more commonplace, and most hackers are demanding Bitcoin as payment. Until now, Georgia’s systems remain offline while investigators look into the attack further. It could be quite some time before the systems are restored, so until then residents will have to take up all legal matters in court rather than online.
