AT&T Paid About $400,000 to Erase Sensitive Data, Hacker Says

A hacker who claims to have stolen sensitive call and text logs from AT&T Inc. said they were paid about $400,000 to erase the data trove.

An analysis of a Bitcoin wallet address provided by the hacker shows a transaction in mid-May that analysts say aligns with an extortion payment. A person familiar with the ransomware negotiations, who asked not to be named to discuss confidential matters, confirmed the payment from AT&T to the hacker. Whether AT&T used an intermediary to pay hackers wasn’t immediately clear.

An AT&T spokesperson declined to comment on whether the company paid a ransom to ...