Ransomware attack hit the City of Oakland

A ransomware attack hit the City of Oakland this week, forcing it to take all systems offline in response to the incident.

The City of Oakland disclosed a ransomware attack, the security breach began on Wednesday night. In an abundance of caution, the City of Oakland has taken impacted systems offline, while they work to secure the impacted infrastructure.

“The City of Oakland has learned that it was recently subject to a ransomware attack that began on Wednesday night. The Information Technology Department is coordinating with law enforcement and actively investigating the scope and severity of the issue. Our core functions are intact. 911, financial data, and fire and emergency resources are not impacted.” reads the notice published by the City of Oakland.

The Information Technology Department notified local authorities and launched an investigation into the incident to determine the scope and severity of the issue.

The notice published by the City confirmed that its core functions (911, financial data, and fire and emergency resources) were not impacted, however, it warns the public of possible delays from the City as a result of the attack.

The ransomware group behind the attacks is currently unknown, and the City is yet to share any details regarding ransom demands or data theft from compromised systems.

“The City is following industry best practices and developing a response plan to address the issue. In an abundance of caution, ITD has taken affected systems offline while they work to secure and restore services safely. In the meantime, the public should expect delays from the City as a result. We are actively monitoring the situation and sending updated information as it becomes available.” concludes the notice.

At this time, the City has yet to reveal the ransomware family that targeted its infrastructure.

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Pierluigi Paganini

(SecurityAffairs – hacking, ransomware)