Austal , which is based in Henderson , Western Australia , is one of the country 's largest shipbuilders ; it has built vessels for the U.S. Navy . The company , which is listed on Australia 's ASX stock exchange , announced the breach late Thursday . The announcement came just a day after a security researcher in France posted Attack.Databreach screenshots on Twitter of the purported stolen data . Austal says the material is neither sensitive nor classified and that it has taken steps to secure its data systems. `` The data breach Attack.Databreach has had no impact on Austal 's ongoing operations , '' the company says . Austal 's business in the United States is unaffected by this issue , as the computer systems are not linked . A spokesman for Austal contacted on Friday says he could n't offer further information on the incident . The breach Attack.Databreach exposed Attack.Databreach ship design drawings that are distributed to customers , fabrication subcontractors and suppliers , Austal says . It also exposed Attack.Databreach `` some staff email addresses and mobile phone numbers . '' Those individuals have been informed as well as a `` small number '' of other stakeholders directly impacted by the breach , the company reports . Austal has contacted the Australian Cyber Security Center and the Australian Federal Police . The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner , which enforces the country 's data protection regulations `` will be involved as required , '' Austal says . Companies are increasingly being subjected to ransoms Attack.Ransom by hackers after their networks have been breached Attack.Databreach . Ransoms Attack.Ransom put companies in tough positions : risk public exposure of potentially embarrassing data , or risk paying a ransom Attack.Ransom and still face a chance the data could be released anyway . Security experts and law enforcement generally advise against paying ransoms Attack.Ransom , even after incidents of file-encrypting malware . But some companies have viewed the situation as either a cost of doing business or a shorter route to recovery . Late last month in the U.S , the city of West Haven , Connecticut , paid Attack.Ransom $ 2,000 to unlock 23 servers that had been infected with ransomware ( see : Connecticut City Pays Ransom Attack.Ransom After Crypto-Locking Attack ) . The city 's attorney , Lee Tiernan , was quoted by the Associated Press as saying `` research showed it was the best course of action . '' If the city did n't have a backup file , it may have had little choice .

Officials based at the City of Del Rio , in Texas , were forced to abandon electronic services and switch to pen and paper after a ransomware attack Attack.Ransom effectively closed down City Hall servers . City representatives disclosed the cyberattack last week . The city was struck Attack.Ransom by the ransomware on Thursday , leading to all servers being disabled to prevent further spread . Del Rio 's Management Information Services ( MIS ) department then attempted to isolate the malware by turning off all Internet connections for other city departments . In turn , this prevented any members of staff from logging into government systems . As a result , employees of each department were forced to use pen and paper in their work and go back to manual entry for transactions taking place -- as and when they could considering there was no access to historical records -- while the ransomware was contained . City officials have informed the FBI of the cyberattack and the Secret Service has now become involved in attempts to find out who is responsible . It is not known at present who is behind the ransomware , what kind of malware is at fault , or whether or not any personal data has been compromised Attack.Databreach . The Texan city has also not revealed how much the ransomware demanded in payment Attack.Ransom , as is usually the case with this particular form of malware . Ransoms Attack.Ransom are usually requested in return for a decryption key -- which may or may not work -- in order to unlock encrypted systems and restore access . However , a Del Rio City Hall spokeswoman did reveal that the malware is somewhat unusual , as the ransom note posted to roughly 30 - 45 PCs contained a phone number to be used to pay the blackmail Attack.Ransom fee . Most of the time , a note will be posted on a landing page containing instructions for paying ransom Attack.Ransom in cryptocurrency and victims will be given a wallet address , rather than a means to directly call the malware 's operator . `` The City is diligently working on finding the best solution to resolve this situation and restore the system , '' an official statement reads . `` We ask the public to be patient with us as we may be slower in processing requests at this time . ''