Colonial Pipeline CEO Confirms $4.4 Million Ransom Payment
May 20, 2021
Compliance
DougOlenick) • May 19, 2021
Colonial Pipeline CEO Joseph Blount (Photo: Colonial Pipeline Co.)
Colonial Pipeline Co. s CEO, Joseph Blount, said Wednesday that he authorized the payment of a $4.4 million ransom just hours after the company was hit by a DarkSide ransomware attack, according to The Wall Street Journal.
While Blount said the decision was difficult to make, he told the newspaper, It was the right thing to do for the country.
Following the attack, Colonial Pipeline temporarily shut down its pipeline operation, crippling the distribution of gasoline and other fuel supplies along the East Coast through the company s 5,500 miles of pipeline and leaving gas stations in several states dry as panicky motorists filled up their cars (see: