JBS paid $11 million ransom after cyberattack

The world's largest meat processing company said Wednesday that it paid an $11 million ransom to cybercriminals after it was forced to halt cattle-slaughtering operations at 13 of its meat processing plants. JBS confirmed the payment in a statement following a cyberattack attributed to the Russian-speaking ransomware gang "REvil."

The company ultimately paid the ransom in Bitcoin cryptocurrency to prevent further disruptions of the meat plants, mitigating potential damage to the food supply — including restaurants, grocery stores and farmers that rely on JBS production.  "This was a very difficult decision to make for our company and for me personally," said Andre Nogueira, CEO of JBS USA, in a statement. "However, we felt this decision had to be made to prevent any potential risk for our customers."