Ransomware operators keep on testing new waters by expanding their exploits to different domains. From healthcare to transportation, every commercial and public domain is on the target of cryptovirological operators. A recent report reveals that parliamentarians have also been the victims of cryptovirological shenanigans. According to the report, the office of Pennsylvania democratic caucus suffered a ransomware attack in March last year. It is worth mentioning that the type of the ransomware strain used in the attack hasn’t been revealed yet.
The incident has only come out in public when the caucus has paid Microsoft nearly $700,000 to rebuild its IT infrastructure. The ransom activity affected the Pennsylvanian Democrats was really extensive. The entire IT system fell to the inflicted cryptovirological activity. The cryptovirological attackers demanded the payment of 28 Bitcoins to provide decrypter for ransomware removal. This amount was equal to roughly $30,000 according to the market worth of Bitcoins at the time of the attack. However, the office refused to bow down to the attackers’ demand and conducted ransomware removal on their own with the help of professionals.
Ransomware attack exposed the vulnerabilities of the IT system of caucus office, which forced the administration to go for the remodeling of the entire digital setup.
Rebuilding costs after ransomware attacks are heavy
Experts have noted that a good number of organizations and public entities have paid hefty sums for the rebuilding of their IT systems after sustaining ransomware attacks. For instance, Atlanta city has spent more than 10 million dollars for rebuilding its ransomware-affected municipality system from scratch. Similarly, Colorado’s transportation department spent $1.5 million dollars for restructuring its IT system after the ransomware attack. This development signifies that even if affected entities can deal with ransomware removal in cheap, they still have to spend a good amount of money for rebuilding the system.
