Tag: Cyberattack

Michigan School Ransomware Attacks Prompt Calls to Restore Internet Accountability

The Center Square

If someone physically attacked a school, the perpetrator would likely be prosecuted immediately. But it’s often harder to prosecute online crimes, including the ransomware attack that closed two Michigan school districts for days in November.

Schools in Hillsdale and Jackson counties were closed last month after ransomware attacks. Ransomware is a malicious attack using malware or software to disrupt access to networks, computer files, or digital files. In order to restore normal functions, the perpetrators of the attack demand some form of compensation. 

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Intelligence Agencies Reportedly Hacked Ransomware Group Responsible for JBS Attack

Admin
Aerial view of a man on a desktop computer with three monitors in front of him

National security agencies in multiple countries reportedly succeeded in hacking ransomware gang REvil, the group responsible for the cyber attack on meatpacker JBS, forcing them offline.

Tom Kellermann, head of cybersecurity strategy at cloud computing company VMWare, told Reuters that intelligence officials in multiple countries worked to stop REvil.

“The FBI, in conjunction with Cyber Command, the Secret Service and like-minded countries, have truly engaged in significant disruptive actions against these groups,” Kellermann, who serves as an adviser to the U.S. Secret Service on cybercrime investigations, told Reuters. “REvil was top of the list.”

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Hackers Steal Customer Information in McDonald’s Cyberattack

Michigan Star Staff
McDonald's at sunset

Hackers obtained customer data from McDonald’s after breaching the company’s systems in the U.S., South Korea and Taiwan, according to The Wall Street Journal.

U.S. employees’ and franchisees’ contact information, seating capacity of U.S. locations and the dimensions of play areas at restaurants in the U.S were all exposed during the breach, McDonald’s said Friday, The Wall Street Journal reported. While McDonald’s said the hack didn’t cause disruptions at any of its locations, it vowed to launch an investigation into the breach and continue to invest in bolstering its cybersecurity protocol.

“McDonald’s will leverage the findings from the investigation as well as input from security resources to identify ways to further enhance our existing security measures,” the global fast food chain told U.S. employees in an internal message, according to the WSJ.

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19 States Urge Biden to Reinstate Keystone After Colonial Pipeline Hack Caused Mass Gas Shortages

Michigan Star Staff
Out of service gas station

A 19-state coalition urged President Joe Biden to reinstate the Keystone XL Pipeline and reverse his energy policies because of the recent gas shortages.

Gas shortages along the east coast caused by a cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline prove the need for reliable gas pipelines in the U.S., the 19-state coalition led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen wrote in a letter to Biden on Monday. The U.S. needs better energy infrastructure if the shutdown of one pipeline leads to such extreme spikes in prices and lines at gas stations, the state attorneys general said.

“A temporary shutdown of one pipeline’s full-capacity operations shouldn’t bring half the country to the brink,” the coalition of states wrote to Biden. “We need more safe and clean energy sources. And that includes the Keystone XL Pipeline.”

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