Companies in New Brunswick and around the world are being impacted by a cyber crime known as ransomware.
Cyber criminals are able to gain access to files on computer systems and can block data until a company pays a ransom.
Scott Beck with Riverview-based BeckTek says depending on the ransom being demanded, some companies have even gone out of business.
“So once they get into your files and they are able to encrypt them and own them, you have to pay to get access back to your information. It can cripple companies… bring them to their knees,” he says.
Even after a ransom is paid, Beck says there’s always the possibility that access to files will still be denied.
He adds cyber crime is difficult to prosecute since it has become international.
If the crime occurs here in Moncton, he says RCMP would investigate but the hackers could be on the other side of the world such as Russia or Ukraine so it becomes a jurisdictional issue.
