If you run a farming co-op, watch out for ransomware. The FBI has noticed a disturbing trend of hackers targeting IT systems belonging to farming groups during the planting and harvesting seasons.
In a security notice, the FBI reveals that six grain cooperatives suffered ransomware attacks during last fall’s harvest season. Another two attacks occurred earlier this year, which could “impact the planting season by disrupting the supply of seeds and fertilizer,” the agency says.
The hackers are preying on farming groups during the critical planting and harvesting seasons in the hopes it’ll further pressure them into paying the ransom demands. “Cyber actors may perceive (farming) cooperatives as lucrative targets,” the agency adds.
The FBI didn’t disclose how many farm groups have been hit.
