Hackers invaded in the early hours of Wednesday (28) the system of the Court of Justice of Rio Grande do Sul (TJ-RS). As determined by GZH, criminals demand an undisclosed amount in Bitcoin.
After almost three days, the electronic channel is still down. However, the Court did not accept the offensive and said that it is already adopting all the appropriate measures.
In the meantime, judicial and administrative proceedings are suspended with no plans to resume.
Bitcoin payment
According to the TJ-RS, the invasion was carried out using ransomware in the early hours of Wednesday. System instability was reported on the morning of the same day by servers.
In exchange for restoring data from the judiciary, criminals demanded payments in Bitcoin. However, members of the public institution do not believe that the action was premeditated for financial purposes.
“Even if it were the goal, we would never pay”, guaranteed the judge Antonio Vinicius Amaro da Silveira, president of the Communication Council of the TJ.
According to members of the agency, financial bailouts are more common in private institutions. In addition, it is suspected that the message sent was automatic.
Whether or not with other interests, it has been more than 48 hours with the system down and no sign of progress in the negotiations.
According to the TJ, professionals focused on computer security are at the forefront to recover the system.
In the last update of the case, the advisory body confirmed the “rescue” of the Electronic Information System (SEI), but with some restrictions.
“The TJ-RS informs the return of the SEI System to external and internal users. Remote access and the use of workstations within the network are prohibited. ”
Investigations
It is not yet known what would have motivated the criminal action. Although there is suspicion of factional action, interest in personal and confidential data, such as those contained in lawsuits, is not ruled out.
To expedite the investigation, the Public Ministry called the Specialized Criminal Prosecutor’s Office to act on the case.
In parallel, the TJ’s internal investigation now continues with the assistance of the National Council of Justice (CNJ). The Police Crimes Enforcement and Civil Police Fraud Office was also summoned for the case.
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