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Colonial Pipeline has confirmed it paid a $4.4m (£3.1m) ransom to the cyber-criminal gang responsible for taking the US fuel pipeline offline.

Its boss told the Wall Street Journal he authorised the payment on 7 May because of uncertainty over how long the shutdown would continue.

“I know that’s a highly controversial decision,” Joseph Blount said in his first interview since the hack.

The 5,500-mile (8,900-km) pipeline carries 2.5 million barrels a day.

According to the firm, it carries 45% of the East Coast’s supply of diesel, petrol and jet fuel.

Chief executive Mr Blount told the newspaper that the firm decided