Files held for ransom!

Has anybody heard of this, or is it the latest twist in Internet crime? Some time this weekend, somebody "cracked" our school computers, stole files, and then sent an email demanding that money be transferred to an overseas account (in Spain) by a certain time yesterday, or the files would be destroyed. They didn't get anything terribly important, because sensitive files are stored on a computer that doesn't have Internet access, and isn't linked to the other computers in any way, plus there were back-ups. The police were at the school all evening, going through the system. Apparently several firms have had the same thing happen recently. The bank in question says the money is re-transferred to an account in eastern Germany.

Wow that is crazy!! I have never heard of anything like that!

Wow that is crazy we have about 20 firewalls at work because information is so sensitive and everyone 'needs' internet and saves to the central system, there would be so many problems if information got into the wrong hands.

I can imagine, depending on what information they get, if they looked at it they could sell a lot of it!

Originally Posted by icklemiss21

Wow that is crazy we have about 20 firewalls at work because information is so sensitive and everyone 'needs' internet and saves to the central system, there would be so many problems if information got into the wrong hands.

I can imagine, depending on what information they get, if they looked at it they could sell a lot of it!

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Your work should get some new people then, 20 firewalls is not going to save anyone.

Theres no valid reason for 20 firewalls.

I don't disagree, they are all idiots! They 'accidentally' deleted their back up last week after deleting half the mailboxes on the server

This isn't new. when I first entered IT (many moons ago), someone from China cracked into our web-based email program and changed the default page.

Someone is out there always trying to break through a company or a network of computer's firewall. It's been going on since the internet was born and teenagers had nothing else better to do.

I've also heard about cases where a web site is bombarded by Denial of Service attacks and then the owners are blackmailed to make it stop.

Originally Posted by lunasmom

Someone is out there always trying to break through a company or a network of computer's firewall. It's been going on since the internet was born and teenagers had nothing else better to do.

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Kids are always trying to crack the school's or teachers' computers to alter grade lists or get copies of tests and exams, which is why we have a separate computer with no Internet access for such stuff at school, and I have another one here at home as well (not networked with this one).
It's just that the idea of "abducting" files seems so bizarre. Since the school didn't react, except by getting the police involved, I suppose the files have been destroyed.