Ransomware Hijacks Hotel Smart Keys to Lock Guests Out of their Rooms

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An Australian Hotel was hacked and their electronic key card system was compromised.  The hotel admitted to paying $1,600 US in bitcoins to unlock doors.  The hackers gained access to the system and locked guests out of their rooms.

The hotel admits that is has a very robust IT system and this is not the first hacking attempt.   Beyond access to the keycard system, the hackers gained access to the general computing systems in the hotel, shutting down several hotel computers.

After the ransom was paid, the system was returned to normal, but the hotel did find a backdoor that was left by the hackers, allowing the hackers access back into the system.   Fortunately the backdoor was found and measure were taken to prevent this from happening in the future.

It’s scary to think what hackers can do and what they will attack.   We look at technology as a way of making our lives easier, but hackers view them as an opportunity to make money.    Needless to say, nothing is safe in this digital world today!