It will “take time” to recover the AutoExpress system after being “hijacked” by hackers

Although he did not specify the details, the interim director Technology and Innovation Service of Puerto Rico (PRITS, in English), Nannette Martinez OrtizAdmittedly on Tuesday, the computer was exposed for more than a week as it would take “time” to recover AutoExpresso considering the complexity of the “hijacking” or cyber attack.

The officer said New day A kind of attack “ransomware”, Its security metrics change daily. For this reason, all enterprise operating systems, computers, networks, and databases need to be cleaned up to handle emergencies. Professional account management (PAM), which manages AutoExpress before restarting the system.

“The AutoExpreso system is very complex and takes time to reset due to the complexity of all the components it contains.: All servers, all the computers, databases, networks of this company that need to be cleaned up … Before it goes up, you need to make sure that all of them are cleaned and safe. While our priority is to get all of these services back as soon as possible, the truth is that the most responsible way to do it is to make sure it is done safely and without risking any of the citizen services. The performance of the AutoExpreso system will be a solid one, ”the official explained in a telephone interview.

In addition, he confirmed that the demand for payment of a certain amount fixed by the cyber attackers is the function of this type of attack.

Director of Highway AuthorityEdwin Gonzalez confirmed this morning that the hackers affected his service Auto Express Asked for money to release They “hijacked” data.

“It simply came to our notice then. I can not go into details because I do not want to affect the investigationGonzalez said in a radio interview (WKAQ – 580 AM).

“But, in a data transfer note, what they are doing is they are demanding an X sum,” he added.

When asked if they were asking for millions of dollars, Gonzalez replied, “I do not want to enter without affecting the process.”

When asked the same question again, he replied: “Yes, x is the amount of money in dollars.”

“Asking for ransomware is an act on the part of the victim, which may involve the transfer of money or information.Said Martinez Ortiz.

However, the official declined to comment on how much money the hackers were asking for, saying “forensic analysis would be affected if the details were released.” Initially, Martínez Ortiz noted that hackers should leave only one note and contact them to release the data, saying “no money was demanded”.

However, he acknowledged that their numbers were not enough to defeat Puerto Rico’s policy.

That raised the question Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI, in charge of the investigation) Martinez Ortiz, who is in charge of the investigation, replied, “I can not comment on it,” but he did not deny involvement.

“We have joint ventures with federal agencies such as the FBI.”Shrunk

For his part, the head of the FBI in Puerto Rico, Joseph GonzalezHe did not confirm or deny his agency’s involvement in the investigation, although he made it clear that it was his duty to monitor the cyber attacks facing AutoExpreso.

“We can not confirm or deny it, but that’s all I can tell you As an agency at the FBI, it is our duty to liaise, talk and communicate with various parties in the event of any cyber attacks affecting the government, a private company or the critical infrastructure of the country.“, I said New day.