Multiple thousand dollar ransomware scams always seem like the type of thing that happens to other people, somewhere on the other side of the planet. In reality however it can happen very close to home. One prime example comes from a mere 5 hours away in Wasaga Beach, ON.
Global News reports: “The Town of Wasaga Beach paid nearly $35,000 to cyber criminals in order to regain access to the town’s servers, which had been held ransom for seven weeks … the Town of Wasaga Beach’s computer system was compromised on April 30 with a virus which left the town’s data locked.”
The price demanded for the release of the 11 servers was 11 bitcoin. Which doesn’t seem like much until you realize that a single bitcoin was then close to $13,000. The staff reported after many rounds of negotiations, the end cost amounted to 3 bitcoin, or $34,950.
Following the incident however, the town ended up paying an additional $216,809 for consultants, reprogramming the town’s security access system, making necessary I.T. purchases, restoring the financial and smaller databases, as well as internal staff overtime and internal productivity losses.
The town has since built a new network with additional managed security services costing an extra $95,000 a year, which is believed to be safeguarded against a repeat attack. Additional backup servers have also been installed, and the town’s leaders say they’ve developed a better understanding of how to protect their corporate security.
“We are well positioned to weather the storm and move forward,” said councillor Joe Belanger. “This could have been devastating.”
As unpleasant of a thought as it is, none of us are impervious to hacks or ransomware attacks so security is vital to your business. If you want an assessment of your current digital security or if you want more security added please give us a call at 613-817-1212 or email [email protected].
Wasaga Beach Pays $34,950 to Cyber Criminals
Published on July 31, 2018