Articles by Frank Bajak

Bajak is AP Technology Writer.

Kaseya Ransomware Attack by REvil Gang Is Global in Scale

Cyber-security teams worked feverishly Sunday to stem the impact of the single biggest global ransomware attack on record, with some details emerging about how the Russia-linked gang responsible breached the company whose software was the conduit. An affiliate of the …

Understanding Ransomware and Why Experts Call for Multi-Pronged Response

Political hand-wringing in Washington over Russia’s hacking of federal agencies and interference in U.S. politics has mostly overshadowed a worsening digital scourge with a far broader wallop: crippling and dispiriting extortionary ransomware attacks by cybercriminal mafias that mostly operate in …

Insurer AXA to Stop Paying for Ransomware Crime Payments in France

In an apparent industry first, the global insurance company AXA said Thursday it will stop writing cyber-insurance policies in France that reimburse customers for extortion payments made to ransomware criminals. AXA, among Europe’s top five insurers, said it was suspending …

As Ransomware Criminals Get More Ruthless, Experts Call for Multi-Pronged Response

Political hand-wringing in Washington over Russia’s hacking of federal agencies and interference in U.S. politics has mostly overshadowed a worsening digital scourge with a far broader wallop: crippling and dispiriting extortionary ransomware attacks by cybercriminal mafias that mostly operate in …

Florida School District Hit with ‘Bizarre’ $40M Ransomware Demand

The computer system of one of the nation’s largest school districts was hacked by a criminal gang that encrypted district data and demanded $40 million in ransom or it would erase the files and post students’ and employees’ personal information …

Man Admits Ransomware Plot Against Tesla in Nevada

A Russian man has pleaded guilty in the U.S. to offering a Tesla employee $1 million to cripple the electric car company’s massive electric battery plant in Nevada with ransomware and steal company secrets for extortion, prosecutors and court records …

Surveillance Camera Hack Exposes Hospitals, Businesses, Schools

Hackers aiming to call attention to the dangers of mass surveillance say they were able to peer into hospitals, schools, factories, jails and corporate offices after they broke into the systems of a security-camera startup. That California startup, Verkada, said …

Florida Cyber Attack Raises Alarm Over Security of Water Treatment Plants

A hacker’s botched attempt to poison the water supply of a small Florida city is raising alarms about just how vulnerable the nation’s water systems may be to attacks by more sophisticated intruders. Treatment plants are typically cash-strapped, and lack …

Texas Software Provider to Local Governments Reports Data Breach

A Texas-based provider of software services to local governments and schools across the United States, Tyler Technologies, told customers on Sept. 23 that an unknown intruder broke into its phone and information technology systems. It could not immediately be determined …

German Officials Seize Server With U.S. Police Files Stolen in Data Breach

At the behest of the U.S. government, German authorities have seized a computer server that hosted a huge cache of files from scores of U.S. federal, state and local law enforcement agencies obtained in a Houston data breach last month. …