"Tiina Parikka was half-naked when she read the email. It was a Saturday in late October 2020, and Parikka had spent the morning sorting out plans for distance learning after a Covid outbreak at the school where she was headteacher. She had taken a sauna at her flat in Vantaa, just outside Finland's capital, Helsinki, and when she came into her bedroom to get dressed, she idly checked her phone."
"I knew then that this is not a game, she says. The email was in Finnish. It was jarringly polite. We are contacting you because you have used Vastaamo's therapy and/or psychiatric services, it read. Unfortunately, we have to ask you to pay to keep your personal information safe. The sender demanded 200 in bitcoin within 24 hours, otherwise the price would go up to 500 within 48 hours."
Tiina Parikka received an extortion email after a hacker accessed Vastaamo's therapy records. The message included Parikka's name and social security number and demanded bitcoin payment to prevent publication. The email threatened to publish names, addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers and detailed transcripts of conversations with therapists or psychiatrists if victims did not pay. The demand was initially 200 in bitcoin within 24 hours, rising to 500 within 48 hours. The breach caused intense emotional distress, with Parikka describing panic, fear of exposure, and feeling violated by the prospect of private therapy notes becoming public.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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