Hackers extorted $1.14M from UCSF
This article makes the point that law enforcement agencies take the stance that paying a ransom further encourages this behavior from hackers.<p>In the case of state or public institutions like this, would it be advisable for legislatures to make it illegal for state entities to pay ransoms, and then very publicly announce these laws? I.e. can/should we make credible, public commitments in advance to not pay ransom, or to remove that choice from the organization-level administrators? Would this make these organizations less appealing targets?<p>"Sorry, we are not authorized to pay you any ransom due to SB-XYZ. If you can get several hundred thousand signatures from CA residents to petition for a referendum to overturn this law, we may be able to pay you a ransom after ... well not the upcoming election but maybe the one after that."