Tag Archive for: Fulton

Fulton County tech troubles continue, expert believes it’s a ransomware attack

/in


Possible ransomware attack on Fulton County

Technology trouble continues to be a problem for Fulton County after a cyberattack at the end of January, but a cybersecurity expert believes a ransomware attack may be to blame.

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. – Technology trouble continues to be a problem for Fulton County after a cyberattack at the end of January, but a cybersecurity expert believes a ransomware attack may be to blame.

A number of systems remain offline, creating a big headache for residents.

The county has remained tight-lipped and will not answer many questions, other than to say it is “under investigation.”

“When it happened on Monday, I was expecting it to be taken care of by Tuesday,” said Rajiv Garg, a Cybersecurity Expert and Associate Professor at Emory’s Goizueta Business School.

There are rumblings inside and outside the county that this is a multi-million dollar ransomware attack. Officials will not confirm if that’s true. Garg says based on his experience, it’s likely because of how long it’s been going on.

“The issue here is they have some data that is probably not backed up that is either lost or encrypted because of the ransomware,” he said.

What is being impacted by cyberattack?

The attack is impacting phones and court and tax systems. Fulton County residents are caught in the middle.

“The only thing that they’re accepting is a check or money order and if you don’t have that, then you can’t pay,” said Angie Allen, a Fulton County resident.

Residents are being told that their tax payments will not be posted until the system is back online. Joe Jordan paid his property tax bill with a check Monday. His proof of payment is some writing on the back of a business card.  

“That is the only receipt that I have,” he said.

During a Monday afternoon news conference, Fulton County Board of Commissioners Chairman Robb Pitts gave an update on the cyberattack. He did not take any questions about what’s happening, but said this about the investigation.

“There is no evidence or reason to believe that this incident is related to the election process or other current events,” he said.

The county says it has been working around the clock to get systems back up and…

Source…

Fulton County government systems still down due to cyberattack

/in


Many Fulton government systems in addition to the library’s public computers remained down following the weekend’s cyberattack. Phones at county offices are out and several offices — including elections, the tax commissioner, Superior Court clerk, county service centers and Probate Court service centers — are all closed.

Only satellite offices for license tag renewals are open, said county spokeswoman Jessica Corbitt. Tags can also be renewed at the automated kiosks in various locations. Courts are operating with “backup processes,” but online public functions aren’t working.

Matt Coggin is hoping he’s close to securing a liquor license for the Roswell Road location of his DBA Barbecue.

“I’m supposed to go before the liquor review board Monday or Tuesday,” said Coggin, who’s been following coverage of Fulton County’s digital woes. “I’m scared, but I’m going to keep my fingers crossed. We’re kind of near the end.”

DBA already operates a Virginia-Highland location and Coggin is hopeful the tech wreck will be over quickly.

“I’m optimistic this will all be cleared up soon,” he said. “I’m feeling lucky.”

Matt Coggin.

Credit: Provided

icon to expand image

Credit: Provided

Few details have been released about the attack. Many county offices were closed Monday, when County Commission Chair Robb Pitts confirmed there had been a “cybersecurity incident” over the weekend. He said he didn’t know when county functions would be restored.

“At this time we are not aware of any transfer of sensitive information about Fulton County citizens or employees,” Pitts said.

Law enforcement is investigating, and county officials don’t expect to release much more information while that continues.

The lack of details released so far makes it hard to tell the scope and effects of the attack, said cybersecurity expert Brendan Saltaformaggio, associate professor at Georgia Tech’s School of Cybersecurity & Privacy.

“I really would encourage Fulton to get that information out to the public as quickly as they can,” he said.

What stands out to Saltaformaggio so far is the “big spread of systems” that were affected. That could be due to one very broad-based attack or several small ones,…

Source…

EU denies Google is under investigation, early evidence appears weak (Scott M. Fulton, III/BetaNews)

/in

Scott M. Fulton, III / BetaNews:
EU denies Google is under investigation, early evidence appears weak  —  This morning, despite clearly and pointedly phrased headlines such as this one proclaiming that the European Commission had opened an antitrust investigation into Google, the Commission released a statement this morning saying no such investigation was launched.

Read more