If you’ve been religiously watching HBO’s hit series Game of Thrones like so many others, then you may already know that we could be seeing new episodes a lot earlier than expected. However, this wasn’t a decision made by HBO, but by a team of elite hackers credited with stealing an alleged 1.5 terabytes of private data from the television network. A ransom note has been given for the information as HBO struggles to decide on their next move.

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The situation began last month when the network received their ransom note in the form of a text video along with bits of the stolen data. The hackers claim to have successfully executed this type of attack before and even claim to profit nearly $15 million a year from such thefts. Their demands were made clear when the first dump of content was leaked as they demanded $7.5 million from the company and gave them only three days to comply.

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This cyberattack has prompted questions about how a company as large as HBO could be this vulnerable and what that could mean for all sensitive data online. The answer is a cause for even greater concern. This team of hackers was able to carry out this operation by using a form of malicious software called ransomware. This software is used to seize control of the files on another user’s computer, thus allowing the hacker to use the data as they wish or block the owner from accessing these files. The ransomware can be planted on another computer manually, but typically it comes from thousands of miles away. The growing fear stems from the ease of planting ransomware on a target computer. All the hacker has to do is convince the unsuspecting user to click an infected link of open an email and just like that, the software is in place. From this point the hacker will make contact and attempt to make a deal with the data owner for returning the files to them. This type of attack could pose a risk to countless other data storage centers.

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The team that hacked HBO allegedly did so by paying other hackers for their knowledge of weaknesses in the company’s security. Among hackers, it is common to look for these “backdoors” into companies systems but many times the hacker is doing so for cybersecurity practice, not to steal anything, and will then alert the company to the issue. The problem is, not everybody has such good intentions. These weaknesses can then be sold on the dark web, a sort of internet black market. When a malevolent hacking team acquires this information, it can mean devastating losses to the company, as can be seen from HBO’s current standoff. It can be nearly impossible to track experienced hackers, let alone bring them to some form of justice making these dealings all the more difficult.

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The reason this attack is such a significant threat is not just because fans may be seeing new Game of Thrones episodes a bit early. It is because, along with scripts and footage for new episodes, the hackers have also gained access to critical personal data including personal employee information, confidential emails, contract agreements, and numerous other potentially harmful documents. Though it isn’t clear what type of damage HBO will sustain from the attack, other cases like the ransomware attack on Sony make it clear that the results could be disastrous. Sony had been given the same type of malicious software which led to the disclosure of private employee information and nearly caused the company to go under. As of now, it doesn’t appear that HBO’s reputation has been hit very hard by the leaks, but it could cost them millions to resolve the problem. Some have argued that, if anything, these leaks have been free publicity for the network and their hit series Game of Thrones, boosting their ratings.

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As of now, HBO has offered the hackers only $250,000 for their information, well below their demanded sum. Experts believe this very well may be a tactic to stall until a better strategy can be taken, but until then it is unknown to everyone what the next leak will contain. The entire situation has brought the security to the attention of many other companies hoping that they will not be the next target. You may just be hoping to catch the newest episode of Game of Thrones a little early, but the growing concern of cyberattacks is very real and anybody could be the next victim.