New Orleans Becomes Latest City To Suffer Ransomware Attack

The cyberattack caused the city to completely shut down its network for several days, but did not affect emergency services.

Just a week after the government in Pensacola, Florida suffered outages due to a cyber attack, the New Orleans city government was effectively shut down on Friday by a ransomware attack.

The city’s website remained down as of Monday morning due to the attack, which was first detected at about 5 a.m. on Friday morning, according to city officials. Reports of suspicious activity, mostly in the form of a wave of phishing emails sent to employees, led the government to shut down the city’s computer system around 11 a.m.

Emergency services, including police, the fire department and emergency medical services, were not affected by the outage, as responders were able to use radio equipment to take calls. Dispatching services from the Orleans Parish Communication District, which directs the city’s 911 and 311 lines, was not impacted by the shutdown, according to NOLA.com.

"One positive about being a city that has been touched by disasters ... is our plans and our activities reflect the fact that we can operate without the internet and without a city network," Collin Arnold, New Orleans' homeland security director, told NOLA.com.

Officials said on Friday that they had not received an official ask for a ransom payment, but that they detected ransomware activity on their network before shutting it down.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell announced on Sunday evening that City Hall will be open during normal business hours on Monday, but that the New Orleans municipal and traffic courts will be closed. In addition, the health department will have “limited connectivity and difficulty accessing files and data,” according to a memo from the mayor’s office.

 

 

“Healthcare for the Homeless will be unable to see patients due to the inability to access electronic health records,” the memo said. “They will have all regular sites fully staffed and will be using paper records to reschedule patient appointments when individuals arrive.”

While the city’s information technology department works to address the problems caused by the cyber attack and ensure that no critical data is stolen, the nola.gov website will remain down. In its place, a temporary webpage has been set up for residents to make 311 requests, pay sales, use and parking taxes and pay parking or camera tickets, the mayor said.

Just last month, the Louisiana state government faced a ransomware attack of its own, leading the state to shut down several hotlines for a day or so. Government officials said they did not pay a ransom and did not suffer significant data loss as a result of the attack.

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • Allegion, Comfort Technologies Implement Mobile Credentials at the Artisan Apartment Homes in Florida

    Artisan Apartment Homes, a luxury apartment complex in Dunedin, Florida, recently transitioned from mechanical keys to electronic locks and centralized system software with support from Allegion US, a leading provider of security solutions, technology and services, and Florida-based Comfort Technologies, which specializes in deploying multifamily access control, IoT devices and software management solutions. Read Now

  • Mall of America Deploys AI-Powered Analytics to Enhance Parking Intelligence

    Mall of America®, the largest shopping and entertainment complex in North America, announced an expansion of its ongoing partnership with Axis Communications to deploy cutting-edge car-counting video analytics across more than a dozen locations. With this expansion, Mall of America (MOA) has boosted operational efficiency, improved safety and security, and enabled more informed decision-making around employee scheduling and streamlining transportation for large events. Read Now

  • Security Industry Association Launches New “askSIA” AI Tool

    The Security Industry Association (SIA) has unveiled a brand-new SIA member benefit – askSIA, a conversational AI agent designed to help users get the most out of their SIA membership, easily access SIA resources and find the latest information on SIA’s training and courses, reports and publications, events, certification offerings and more. SIA members can easily find askSIA by visiting the SIA homepage or looking for the askSIA icon in the top left of webpages. Read Now

    • Industry Events
  • Industry Embraces Mobile Access, Biometrics and AI

    A combination of evolving workplace dynamics, technology innovation and new user expectations is changing how people enter and interact with physical spaces. Access control is at the heart of these changes. Combined with biometrics and AI, mobile access control has become increasingly crucial for deploying entry solutions that are seamless, secure and adaptive to user needs. Read Now

  • Sustainable Video Solution Delivered for Landmark City of London Office Development

    An advanced, end-to-end video solution from IDIS, with a focus on reducing waste and costs, has helped a major office development in the City of London align its security with sustainability objectives. Read Now

New Products

  • A8V MIND

    A8V MIND

    Hexagon’s Geosystems presents a portable version of its Accur8vision detection system. A rugged all-in-one solution, the A8V MIND (Mobile Intrusion Detection) is designed to provide flexible protection of critical outdoor infrastructure and objects. Hexagon’s Accur8vision is a volumetric detection system that employs LiDAR technology to safeguard entire areas. Whenever it detects movement in a specified zone, it automatically differentiates a threat from a nonthreat, and immediately notifies security staff if necessary. Person detection is carried out within a radius of 80 meters from this device. Connected remotely via a portable computer device, it enables remote surveillance and does not depend on security staff patrolling the area.

  • Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

    Connect ONE®

    Connect ONE’s powerful cloud-hosted management platform provides the means to tailor lockdowns and emergency mass notifications throughout a facility – while simultaneously alerting occupants to hazards or next steps, like evacuation.

  • Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems, an industry-leading manufacturer of pedestrian and vehicle secure entrance control access systems, is pleased to announce the release of its groundbreaking V07 software. The V07 software update is designed specifically to address cybersecurity concerns and will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of Automatic Systems applications. With the new V07 software, updates will be delivered by means of an encrypted file.