Lengthy Seaside is newest California metropolis dealing with cybersecurity incident

The town of Lengthy Seaside, California is dealing with a variety of points as a consequence of a cybersecurity incident that was found on Tuesday.

The workplace of the town supervisor launched an announcement on Wednesday saying officers throughout the authorities had been investigating the problem alongside a cybersecurity agency and had contacted the FBI for help. Situated about half-hour south of Los Angeles, the town is residence to almost half 1,000,000 individuals.

“By way of the preliminary investigation, the Metropolis decided a community safety incident occurred,” they mentioned.

“The Metropolis’s expertise and cybersecurity groups are working diligently to establish the supply and scope of the incident, assess potential vulnerabilities, and implement further safety measures, in addition to collect suggestions on mitigation, response and restoration plans.”

Officers confirmed that there’s “no indication” that police, hearth and 911 programs had been affected by the assault. The town didn’t reply to requests for remark about whether or not they’re coping with a ransomware assault however defined that programs had been taken offline “efficient instantly in the course of the investigation and potential remediation.”

The municipal web site is presently down, changed by hyperlinks to the assertion, a discover concerning the assault and cellphone numbers for crucial companies.

The town plans to maintain programs offline for a number of days however authorities electronic mail and cellphone programs will stay accessible. Different services may even stay open in the course of the remediation course of.

The assertion warns that the general public “could expertise some delays with programs and companies.”

“As that is an ongoing investigation, further particulars could emerge because the investigation continues. The Metropolis is dedicated to protecting the general public knowledgeable of any new developments and potential impacts to public companies and to our neighborhood,” they mentioned, pledging to offer info by means of social media websites.

Cities and cities throughout California have confronted a barrage of ransomware assaults in 2023 which have induced widespread harm and knowledge theft.

To this point, the governments attacked embrace:

• Oakland
• Hayward
• Victorville
• San Bernardino County
• San Francisco
• Modesto
• El Cerrito

The state has additionally seen ransomware assaults on a serious professional bono regulation agency and a California-based firm that controls 16 hospitals throughout the nation.

The California’s Public Staff’ Retirement System (CalPERS) — the biggest public pension fund within the U.S. — was affected by the MOVEit knowledge thefts in June, leaking troves of delicate knowledge on retirees from the state, public companies, college districts and retirees of the Judges’ Retirement System and Legislators’ Retirement System.