LaPorte County in Indiana was on the receiving end of a ransomware infection that resulted in officials agreeing to pay more than $130,000, local outlets reported Friday.
County officials agreed to pay the ransom in Bitcoin after determining the FBI was unable to unlock data that had been encrypted by the virus, the local NBC and CBS affiliates reported.
The county’s insurance plan is expected to cover $100,000 of the ransom, according to the outlets.
Ransomware usually works by encrypting the contents of a vulnerable computer and holding that data hostage until the perpetrator receives a payment. Recovery is not guaranteed, however, so the FBI advises victims against heeding the demands of online extortionists.
LaPorte’s computer became infected with ransomware last Saturday, reported WNDU. Another outlet, WBST, identified the specific ransomware strain as Ryuk, which cybersecurity researchers have reported being used in attacks for nearly a year.
The FBI did not immediately return a request for comment, and attempts to reach LaPorte County officials over the weekend were not successful.
LaPorte’s population as of the 2010 was a little more than 111,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The county’s website says that the information technology team in charge of the its computer system supports approximately 400 users.
The FBI was notified in 2018 by 1,493 ransomware victims, the bureau’s cybercrime division said in in April. Those infections resulted in more than $3.6 million in adjusted losses according to the FBI’s report.
More recently, a ransomware infection in May marked the second time in fewer than 14 months that the type of malware disrupted operations in Baltimore, Maryland. Baltimore city officials previously said they expect the cost of that attack will exceed $18 million — more than 200 times the amount the ransomware requested.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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