LOS ANGELES â Late this winter, an international hacking syndicate suspected of conducting ransomware attacks around the globe turned its attention to the police department in the San Gabriel Valley city of Azusa, California. Through means that remain unclear, the hacking group DoppelPaymer appears to have infiltrated computers in the 63-officer department and gained access to critical data. A demand for money followed. For the next 2½ months, officials in the city of 48,000 kept the hack a secret. They said nothing in March as they strategized with the FBI, Los Angeles County Sheriffâs Department and ransomware consultants, and remained mum in April when they opted not to pay, and hundreds of highly sensitive files, including criminal case files and payroll data, spilled out online.