Incident Details
Hinds County Supervisor David Archie disclosed the ransom paid to hackers following a cyberattack that disrupted county services for an extended period. Despite resistance from the board's legal counsel and federal authorities, Archie insisted on transparency, stating that taxpayers deserve to be informed about the management of public funds. This information surfaced during the Hinds County Board of Supervisors' open meeting held on Monday. A majority of four supervisors authorized over $400,000 to a firm tasked with restoring the county's computer network. Additionally, Archie mentioned the ransom amount handed over to the hackers by the county, which ranged between $250,000 to $300,000, leading the board's attorney Tony Gaylor to express frustration by striking his seat.
Incident
How Did the Breach Happen?
Hackers initiated a cyberattack on the computer systems of Hinds County, resulting in the disruption of county services for an extended period.
What Data has been Compromised?
The details do not clearly indicate the specific data that was exposed in the security incident; instead, it discloses the sum of money transferred to the individuals responsible for the breach.
Why Did the company's Security Measures Fail?
The details concerning the company's security measures failing are lacking in the information. It simply states that the breach happened against the recommendations given by the board's attorney and federal investigators.
What Immediate Impact Did the Breach Have on the company?
County services were severely disrupted for several weeks following the breach.
How could this have been prevented?
Prevention strategies were not discussed in the information regarding the breach.
What have we learned from this data breach?
The information leak revealed that Hinds County's computer systems were susceptible to cyber attacks, indicating that their security protocols were insufficient in averting the breach.
Summary of Coverage
David Archie, a Supervisor in Hinds County, stated that a sum ranging from $250,000 to $300,000 was given to hackers following a cyberattack that disrupted county services for multiple weeks. Although the board’s attorney and federal investigators had warned against it, the breach still transpired. The specific data that was compromised during the breach was not specified; however, the incident resulted in over $400,000 being allocated to remedy the harm caused to Hinds County's computer networks.