Hackers hacked into the town’s system in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, and they were nice about it. These hackers locked up the town’s systems, and then sent a note that include details about how to pay the ransom, what steps to take to get rid of the hackers, and information about why the hack was happening.

Hacking, it seems, has turned into a well-oiled business with technological masterminds at the helm. The hackers aren’t just playing a random game. They know what to do and how to get what they want the nice way.

New Spin on Hacking

What do you do when you want to start a business? You take a good look at other businesses, successful businesses. You learn about what makes those companies tick, how to market, what to do when it comes to sales, and how to generally make your business better and effective. Right? Well, that’s exactly what this new class of hackers is doing.

The hackers that targeted Tewksbury, MA, were successful. The powers that be in that small town decided that it was easier and faster to simply pay the $600 ransom than it was to try and fix city systems (which would have cost more in labor and in other ways). Since the hackers made it so simple to make the payment and follow the steps listed, the city’s systems were back up and running within no time.

A New Kind of Hack

Hackers aren’t what they used to be. Today’s hackers are every bit as clever and as smart as they once were, but they have become very entrepreneurial as well. Now, hackers have the ability to directly target their market (as would any business), and to help that market do exactly what they want. Hackers can even sell their services to other hackers.

To say that the hacking game has changed is an understatement. Things still get hacked in a way that confuses most people and companies never see it coming, but dealing with your neighborhood hacker is a lot simpler than it once was.

There are now instructions and details about why a ransom is being asked and how to pay that ransom once you decide to pay it (and you will because it would be too expensive not to).

What to Do When Hacked

Trying to fight most hackers is kind of futile. Once you wind up in a situation where your system has been hacked into, it’s really impossible most of the time to get out of that situation. Most hackers today want money for a complete system restoration. Sometimes the amount that hackers want is large and impossible but sometimes it actually makes more sense than repairing an entire system and paying people to do so.

If you pay attention to tech news you can sometimes avoid a hack. Other times, though, it’s a lot harder to do so. Either way, just be aware that you are dealing with a completely different kind of hacker - and paying up and following directions is usually a lot easier.