Currently, the southeastern US is struggling with extreme weather; To prepare for it, many people look at the weather forecast. However, one of the main sources of information was not available on Thursday morning: The Weather Channel. The cable broadcaster, which usually provides 24-hour weather information in a live broadcast, has fallen victim to a malware attack that infiltrated the network and disrupted live broadcasting, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Between 6:00 and 7:39, therefore, the station had to resort to recorded material.
We are experiencing technical difficulties with our live broadcast. We apologize for any inconvenience while we resolve this issue.
— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) April 18, 2019
On Twitter, The Weather Channel initially spoke only of technical difficulties. However, in a later tweet, the station said it was a malware attack and apologized to its audience for the “inconvenience”. Fortunately, it has been possible to restore the system through backup mechanisms. In the meantime, the FBI has been switched on.
— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) April 18, 2019
Employees of the station reported to investigators of the US Federal Police that it was ransomware. The demands on the transmitter are currently unknown, as well as the type of ransomware was used and how the malware came on the computers of The Weather Channel.
It was not so fortunate for the public administration at the end of March in a malware attack on Jackson County in the US state of Georgia: Here they bought themselves by a payment of $ 400,000, after the extortion Trojan Ryuk the county mail server and disabled the computer systems of the local police for several days. By the end of 2018, a major US publishing house had also fallen victim to a Ryuk attack.