The White House has opened a debate over the merits of companies making ransom payments to cyber attackers after a group of hackers shut down a US oil pipeline over the weekend, highlighting the seriousness of the threat to critical infrastructure.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has long opposed such payments on the grounds that they will encourage more ransomware attacks, in which hackers take control of a target’s computers or data until their financial demands are met.
Anne Neuberger, US deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technologies, on Monday said the Biden administration was “definitely looking at” its “approach to ransomware actors and ransoms overall”.