Cyberattacks a wakeup call for local governments to prepare

ATLANTA – Atlanta police officers initially had to write reports by hand. Residents still can’t pay water bills online. Municipal court dates are being reset.

All are fallout from a ransomware attack last week that hobbled the city’s invisible infrastructure.

Another ransomware attack hit Baltimore’s 911 dispatch system over the weekend, prompting a roughly 17-hour shutdown of automated emergency dispatching. The Colorado Department of Transportation suffered two attacks just over a month ago. And the North Carolina county that’s home to Charlotte totally rebuilt its system after a December attack.

For cash-strapped local governments, paying for robust protection against the invisible menace of a cyberattack can be a hard sell. But cyberattacks continue to proliferate, and experts say preparation and strong defensive measures are necessary to avoid the crippling effects.

“As elected officials, it’s often quite easy for us to focus on the things that people see because, at the end of the day, our residents are our customers,” Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said Monday. “But we have to really make sure that we continue to focus on the things that people can’t see, and digital infrastructure is very important.”

Although it’s vital to make sure systems are up to date and have the latest patches, malware evolves so quickly that experts also stress the importance of comprehensive backups and a quick response when an attack does happen.

“I don’t think any security is flawless,” said Craig McCullough, a vice president at security firm Commvault. “I always approach it from the standpoint of it’s not a matter of if but when, and when it happens, are you prepared? Are you going to be able to get your data back?”