While we argue Conspiracy or Conspiracy Theory...

[Kid Berwyn]

6. Virgin Islands Police computers compromised by Ransomware

VIPD CASE FILES WIPED OUT FROM COMPUTERS FOLLOWING INTRUSION; HACKERS DEMANDING RANSOM FOR ACCESS

The Virgin Islands Consortium
Aug. 2, 2019

Excerpt...

The extent of the damage is far-reaching. “I was made aware to the fact that many of our computers were compromised. I was made aware that we had instructed all our users to not go on the particular server, to not go online and so therefore there was a full approach to attempt to minimize the damage. But as I said, many of the computers were already affected by the time the system administrators were alerted to the presence of a potential ransomware.”

The V.I.P.D. has refused to pay the hackers the ransom demanded to unlock the system. “As you know, quite frequently when you pay the ransom it doesn’t guarantee the hackers are going to provide you with the encryption key to read the encryption, and so we have not paid a ransom,” said the commissioner nominee.

Mr. Velinor said some officers had access to their computer systems again, but when asked whether those officers were able to regain access to their files, he acknowledged that access was only provided after the computers were wiped clean. Some officers who had stored files on external hard drives managed to recoup at least some data.

Whether the lost files can be recouped was unclear, but Mr. Velinor said the police department would try to. “We are utilizing various sources to include the F.B.I. and others to assist with the file recovery and decoding the ransomware encryption,” he said.

Continues...

https://viconsortium.com/breaking-news/vipd-case-files-wiped-out-from-computers-following-intrusion-hackers-demanding-ransom-for-access/