Ransom paid to regain computers

A Los Angeles hospital paid a ransom in bitcoins equivalent to about $17,000 to hackers who infiltrated and disabled its computer network, the medical center’s chief executive said Wednesday.

It was in the best interest of Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center to pay the ransom of 40 bitcoins — currently worth $16,664 — after the network infiltration that began Feb. 5, CEO Allen Stefanek said in a statement.

The FBI is investigating the attack, often called “ransomware,” where hackers encrypt a computer network’s data to hold it “hostage.”

On Monday, 10 days after the attack, the network was in full operation again.