by Claudia Beib, Futurism
The city of Atlanta has been hacked. On the morning of March 22, a remote ransomware attack trapped the city’s data behind an encrypted wall that will only be lowered if the city coughs up a $51,000 ransom, paid out in bitcoin. But five days in, the effects are profound, crippling some of the city’s critical functions. As of March 27, city employees remain without email or internet access; residents cannot pay their electric bills; wi-fi is shut down at the Atlanta International Airport; and many departments — including the city jail — “are running on pen and paper while there is no access to electronic records for municipal court,” according to a report from Georgia Public Broadcasting, NPR reports.
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