A Florida City Paid a $600,000 Bitcoin Ransom to Hackers Who Took Over Its Computers

The city council of Riviera Beach, Florida, 50 miles north of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, voted on Monday to pay a ransom of $600,000 in Bitcoin to hackers in hope of getting back the city's compromised data, CBS News reports.

The hackers apparently got into the city's system when an employee clicked on an email link that allowed them to upload malware. The city had numerous problems, including losing its email system and 911 dispatchers not being able to enter calls into the computer, according to CBS.

The FBI, Secret Service and Department of Homeland Security are investigating the attack, according to The Palm Beach Post.

This type of activity will intensify government regulation of Bitcoin making it more difficult for the unsophisticated to use Bitcoin without being tracked.

#GovernmentNeverLetsACrisisGoToWaste

-RW