A Maine county sheriff says the county and four area police departments recently paid a ransom after a virus locked the computer system they use to keep records and share files.
Lincoln County Sheriff Todd Brackett tells WCSH6 that someone accidentally downloaded a virus that put an encryption code on all the computer data the four departments and county share.
The said the virus - called "megacode" - made the system unusable until they paid a ransom fee of about $300 to the creator of the virus. The department was then given a special code to unlock the encryption and restore the files.
Brackett said the FBI tracked the money to a Swiss bank account, but could go no further.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
