Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner has declared that the city will not fall to ransom demands after hackers siphoned 5.79 TB of data earlier this month.
The attackers, identified as the Rhysida group – known for a 2023 breach of the British Museum – demanded 30 Bitcoin, roughly €2m, in exchange for not releasing their trove. Wegner stated the city will not comply, emphasizing a zero‑tolerance stance on cyber‑extortion.
The compromise forced the shutdown of housing‑benefit applications, record‑setting transport and environmental department systems, and halted services for several days. Officials reported that between 7 and 12 August a data leak occurred, followed by network shutdowns on 14 August.
Maastricht‑style forensic teams are probing the scope of the breach, and state and federal security agencies are investigating the perpetrators with urgency. The mayor’s office noted that sensitive personal information could have been exposed, though concrete details remain unverified.
The Rhysida group has announced it will auction the stolen data after a seven‑day countdown, mirroring the ransom the group is pursuing. The group’s dark‑web site lists contracts, personnel files, passwords and thousands of contact details for Berlin residents.
Berlin’s attack comes just a month before city elections; however, lawmakers confirmed that election infrastructure has not been compromised. Authorities continue to monitor potential vulnerabilities in public systems while pressuring the attackers towards a resolution.
