An organization representing indigenous tribes in Canada recently paid a ransom of $20,000 in Bitcoin to restore access to computer files that were encrypted by a hacker.
According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), $20,000 in bitcoin was paid by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Peoples (FSIN) to an anonymous hacker who hacked into the organization's computer systems. However, the hacker first contacted FSIN representatives five months ago, sending an email demanding payment of $100,000 worth of bitcoin in order to gain access to Federation files.
The cyber hacker managed not only to gain full control, but also to deny access to the organization's employees to mailboxes and internal files. The hacker took possession of a large amount of confidential information stored on the Federation's computers, both internal legal documents and personal data of individuals associated with the Federation and its members.
It is noteworthy that the hacker managed to remain undetected for a long period of time, and when the system was hacked remains unknown, just as it is unclear whether the hacker kept a copy of the information after the money was paid. The hacking of the system was discovered only after receiving a ransom demand in May. An emergency meeting of the audit committee and the FSIN treasury council did not reach a consensus.
Proposals to inform the police and publish information about the hacker attack were never implemented, and negotiations with the hacker stalled due to the unwillingness of most members of the organization to pay a ransom without a guarantee of returning access to the files.
Perhaps the hacker would have remained without the ransom if not for the initiative of one of the FSIN members. He made an anonymous payment to the hacker in Bitcoin in the amount of more than $20,000. The name of the payer is not disclosed and the organization has not yet given official comments on what happened. It is only known that the leadership of the federation demands clarification and an account from their colleague for arbitrariness. And after the incident, a cybersecurity agreement was concluded with a private company, and the organization continues to operate as normal.
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