SA cyber gurus weigh in on Judson ISD hack
If you feel like you’re hearing about more ransomware cyberattacks, it’s not your imagination.
The Colonial Pipeline, meat processor JBS, chemical distributor Brenntag, computer-maker Acer, automaker KIA and the Houston Rockets are just a few organizations hit by data hijackers so far this year.
Ransomware encrypts files and systems, rendering them unusable to the owner. The hackers then demand a ransom, usually in cryptocurrency, in exchange for releasing the data.
The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center reported 2,474 ransomware attacks in the U.S. in 2020, with losses totaling more than $29.1 million. This year is on pace to smash those numbers.
Gasoline tankers pass by the Colonial Pipeline storage tanks located in Austell, Georgia, on May 10, 2021, as they enter the Marathon Powder Springs Terminal. A ransomware attack shut down the Alpharetta-based Colonial Pipeline that delivers roughly 45% of fuel consumed on the East Coast. (John Spink/The Atlanta Journal-Constitution/TNS)
John Spink / [email protected], Staff / TNS
Ransomware is just a fraction of the ever-growing list of computer threats. Last year, the FBI fielded 791,790 internet crime complaints nationwide, a 69 percent increase from 2019. The attacks resulted in a loss of $4.1 billion.
In 2020, Texas had 38,640 reported victims of cyber crime, the third highest number in country following California and Florida.
With the National Security Agency’s Texas…
