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Hackers cost Ogdensburg $25,000 following virus attack

Posted 5/16/17

By JIMMY LAWTON OGDENSBURG -- The city expended $25,000 to deal with a recent virus that damaged computer equipment in April. A public report from City Manager Sarah Purdy said a part-time cleaning …

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Hackers cost Ogdensburg $25,000 following virus attack

Posted

By JIMMY LAWTON

OGDENSBURG -- The city expended $25,000 to deal with a recent virus that damaged computer equipment in April.

A public report from City Manager Sarah Purdy said a part-time cleaning position will be left vacant in order to pay for the computer repairs. She said funds from other departments would also be diverted from to cover the costs.

Details on the computer virus were not provided in the update.

The $25,000 expense comes as a blow for the city, which has been working to minimize spending and avoid unforeseen costs in order to keep the tax rate from climbing further.

In 2016 the rate jumped by 13 percent to about $19.66 per $1,000 of assessed property value.

It is unclear if the problems at the city are connected to the ongoing and widely reported  virus attack, which has allegedly hit more than 200,000 victims across 150 countries.

According to reports, that virus locks computers. The hackers then demand payment in order to unlock devices. However many reports are stating there is no evidence that computers are being unlocked once the payment is made.