Penn Twp. has become the third municipality to be victimized recently by hackers. In late May someone in Belgium got access to a township credit account to steal more than $200, township treasurer Tina Kelly said on May 27.
The latest hack, combined with Duncannon’s becoming the victim of a ransomware attack in April, convinced the supervisors the township needs enhanced cyber security.
Kelly said she found about $212 of fraudulent charges on the Visa account drawn from Orrstown Bank just before Memorial Day. The charges to purchase traveler’s checks were made in Brussels, Belgium.
Kelly spent much of May 25 on the phone with the bank to iron out the fraudulent charges. The bank flagged the charges as possible fraud, keeping them from going through. The bank advised it appears hackers were using computer programs to try random credit numbers until one hit, she said.
The bank removed the charges from the township account and authorities were notified of the breach.
“The account should be made whole in the next couple days,” Kelly told the supervisors.
Township secretary Helen Klinepeter said the township did not lose any money in the attempted theft.
However, Kelly also advised supervisors that recent cyber attacks on local municipalities were cause fo ..
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