Community College Pays Hacker $28,000 for Ransomware Attack

Last month, Los Angeles Valley College (LAVC) was hit with a ransomware attack, forcing the California Community College system to pay an unidentified hacker nearly $28,000 to retrieve stolen data. The investigation is still in the early stages, and as of now no breach data was identified.

LAVC consulted with its leadership, outside cybersecurity experts and law enforcement before making the payment. “It was the assessment of our outside cybersecurity experts that making a payment would offer an extremely high probability of restoring access to the affected systems, while failure to pay would virtually guarantee that data would be lost,” according to a statement. The attack has disrupted many computer, online, e-mail and voicemail systems.

The United States Department of Justice estimates that approximately 4,000 ransomware attacks occurred every day in the U.S. in 2016. Education is the sector most targeted by ransomware, according to a recent report from security analyst BitSight, which found that 13 percent of institutions experienced ransomware attacks last year.

A PDF explaining what happened at LAVC in more detail is available here.

Featured

  • robot typing on a computer

    Microsoft Announces 'Computer Use' Automation in Copilot Studio

    Microsoft has introduced a new AI-powered feature called "computer use" for its Copilot Studio platform that allows agents to directly interact with Web sites and desktop applications using simulated mouse clicks, menu selections and text inputs.

  • cloud and circuit patterns with AI stamp

    Cloud Management Startup Launches Infrastructure Intelligence Tool

    A new AI-powered infrastructure intelligence tool from cloud management startup env0 aims to turn the fog of sprawling, enterprise-scale deployments into crisp, queryable insight, minus the spreadsheets, scripts, and late-night Slack threads.

  • row of students using computers in a library

    A Return to Openness: Apereo Examines Sustainability in Open Source

    Surprisingly, on many of our campuses, even the IT leadership responsible for the lion's share of technology deployments doesn't realize the extent to which the institution is dependent on open source. And that lack of awareness can be a threat to campuses.

  •  floating digital interface with glowing icons, surrounded by faint geometric shapes

    Digital Education Council Defines 5 Dimensions of AI Literacy

    A recent report from the Digital Education Council, a global community devoted to "revolutionizing the world of education and work through technology and collaboration," provides an AI literacy framework to help higher education institutions equip their constituents with foundational AI competencies.