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The clean energy company Invenergy said on Friday that it had been hacked but that it did “not intend to pay any ransom”, after one of the world’s most notorious ransomware gangs threatened to leak embarrassing details about its billionaire chief executive.
The Chicago-based private company, best known for building big wind and solar farms, said that it had “investigated unauthorised activity on some of its information systems” and was complying with all regulations that require disclosure of data breaches.
Invenergy said that its operations had not been impacted by the attack, adding: “Invenergy has not paid and does not intend to pay any ransom”.
The admission came after Russia-linked REvil, among the most prolific criminal ransomware hacking cartels, claimed on its dark web site that it had compromised the company, downloading 4 terabytes of data including information on projects and contracts, according to screenshots seen by the FT.
It also claimed that it had “very personal and spicy” information about the company’s chief executive Michael Polsky. According to the hackers, this includes the energy magnate’s personal emails, compromising photos, and details about his divorce from his first wife Maya Polsky. Invenergy did not comment on the claims.
Mr Polsky amassed a $1.5bn fortune by building electric power companies after emigrating to the US from Soviet Ukraine in 1976 with $500, according to Forbes. In 2007, a judge ruled that Ms Polsky should be awarded half her husband’s cash and assets at the time — around $180m — in what was then one of the most expensive divorces in history.
