CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) reported that an organization paid bitcoins equaling CAD 20,000 as ransom to a cybercriminal group. The organization acted on behalf of the indigenous Canadian tribes. The organization, FSIN (Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations), represents all the native tribes living in Canada.
Earlier, hackers were able to infect the organization’s servers and lock its files. The first demand came months ago. An official of the organization received an email with the ransom demand. At that time, the demand in bitcoin equaled to CAD 100,000 for ransomware removal.
There have been talks around the town that the cybercriminals had their hands on highly sensitive data. They did not only gain access to the business details of the organization but were also able to steal land claims. Additionally, the control of the organization’s IT systems went to the cybercriminals.
Efforts began to catch the hackers, but the authorities were not able to find their identities nor were they able to track their digital trail. Amongst the stolen data, the officials and personnel of the organization were also at risk. Their personal data like social insurance numbers and medical history were accessed.
After the attack was discovered, a meeting of board members was arranged and discussions started regarding ransomware removal and recovery. Subsequently, relevant authorities were notified about the breach. In the beginning, the organization was stunned by the sudden hack.
Amid warnings from the treasury board that clearly discouraged ransom payment, an agreement was reached. Part of the reason behind not paying the ransom included the credibility of the cybercriminals — officials fear that the hackers would not return data after receiving the payment.
A security provider company was contacted in order to address the matter at hand. However, the organization was at last forced to pay.
