Cyberattack Against PA Lawmakers Continues; Ransom Demanded: Reports

Pennsylvania Senate Democrats were the target of a cyberattack that began Friday and continues to lock local lawmakers out of their computers, officials confirmed.

The computers of the Pennsylvania Senate Democratic Caucus were attacked by Ransomware, a type of malware, according to a statement from Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa that was obtained by CNN.

On Monday, lawmakers said that no ransom was paid to resolve the ransomware cyberattack, which has impacted email and websites, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. The amount of the ransom has not been reported in the media or disclosed by officials.

The cyberattack reportedly encrypted the data on the Democrats' server, and an online payment was demanded in exchange for a key code to unlock the system, Costa said in the statement. The network includes various documents, from policy work to constituent case files, according to Costa.

Sen. Daylin Leach, a Democrat in Montgomery, told the Inquirer he's lost access to all of the paperwork on file for constituent requests and state grants.

The FBI is investigating. Microsoft is in the process of a forensic audit to determine who is behind the cyberattack, according to multiple reports.

The cyberattack appeared to be limited to the Democratic Caucus, an FBI spokeswoman told CNN.

The attack hasn’t affected the state’s networks, which are separate, NBC10 reported.

Patch file photo