Ames, Iowa — An Iowa State University expert on cybersecurity says the hacker attack on the southern gas pipeline could have been a lot worse.
Professor Doug Jacobsen says the attack could have done more damage than creating gas lines.
Media reports say the pipeline company paid five million dollars to the hackers. Jacobson says technology has made hacking more tempting.
He says instantly backing up data helped fight ransomware, as companies could wipe computers and install the backed up data and get back to work.
Jacobson says the introduction of malware has changed too as the defense against it has gotten better. He says that’s led to other ways of getting employees to be fooled into letting hackers in.
He says hacks against individuals are very uncommon for one reason.
Jacobson says the hackers have focused on businesses that need their computer systems to operate — such as hospitals — to look for that big payoff.
