Cyber attack was directed at public agencies. Affected departments have been offline since Friday.
Last Friday, August 16, 23 cities in the state of Texas were simultaneously affected by a computer ransomware attack.
According to the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR), the action appears to have been triggered by a single agent.
The cyber attack was mostly directed at public agencies, but the DIR declined to specify which ones.
To NPR, a US radio station, a spokesman said he was unaware of cases in which the "ransom" was paid. The local government's security response was to take all affected departments offline. According to NPR, the attack is already being investigated by the FBI, in partnership with local cybersecurity experts.
It is not yet possible to determine the actual impact of the attack. However, when a single agent can take public departments offline in 23 US cities, it is appropriate to create alarm. While this may not be the case, it is important to underline that digitizing public supply management networks can jeopardize the normal functioning of a region, especially when a computer attack is directed at government agencies. Theft of sensitive data is another of the pressing risks.
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