MAITLAND, Fla. — The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched an investigation after cyberattackers targeted a Maitland synagogue for private information.
Officials said hackers hit the computer network at Ohev Shalom with ransomware, using the malicious software to hold information hostage so that the synagogue would pay up.
Ohev Shalom's board president, Steven Hornick, told Channel 9 he went straight to the police after he was notified of the message that he would have to pay the encrypted files.
Hornick said the FBI has been working to find who is responsible for the attack.
"The only thing they know right now is the type of ransomware that it is that it's very new," said Hornick.
Hornick said the attack has been an inconvenience because files such as Word documents and Excel spreadsheets were encrypted.
Personal information from some of the synagogue's members was not affected in the attack.
The synagogue said the FBI doesn't believe any other place of worship in Central Florida was targeted.
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