Time Warner’s HBO network has revealed it offered US$250,000 to cyber criminals who hacked into its computer system. The offer, made last month, asked them to extend a deadline by one week, promising that HBO would pay a larger ransom.
The attack came as parent company Time Warner was seeking regulatory approval for its sale to AT&T in an $85.4 billion deal announced in October.
An e-mail to the hackers said that HBO was willing to make the payment as a show of “good faith”. But it needed time to fund an account for sending payments in bitcoin digital currency or obtain account information.
The hackers did not respond and revealed details about an upcoming episode of HBO drama Game of Thrones.
