LOS ANGELES—Los Angeles Valley College paid hackers a cyber-ransom after the school experienced a cyber-attack that locked out faculty and students from their accounts and computers.

On January 3, over 1,800 teachers and students were locked out of their school accounts, leaving their data compromised. Fox News reported that the hackers behind the attack threatened to delete all of the data if the ransom was not paid within one week. Los Angeles Valley College ended up paying the $28,000 ransom in bitcoins to regain access to its data.

Los Angeles Community College District Chancellor Francisco C. Rodriguez released a statement on the attack on Friday, January 6, that read:

“The LA Community College District recently learned of malicious cyber activity targeting Los Angeles Valley College. This attack is believed to have taken place over the holidays and we are working closely with local and federal authorities to learn more about its potential impact. Our top priority in resolving this incident is ensuring that the security and privacy of our students and employees is protected. The District will provide updates as additional details are confirmed. In the meantime, we will continue working with law enforcement on their on-going investigations.”

According to Fox News, The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department cyber security unit is investigating the attack.