On 24 July, 2019 the State of Louisiana actually had to declare a state of emergency over what appears to have been a ransomware attack against at least three of the school districts within the state. So far, the districts impacted include Sabine, Ouachita, and Morehouse parishes. The attacks seemed to impact various information technology resources as well as the phone systems.
Formal State of Emergency
The formal state of emergency allows for the use of the Louisiana National Guard, the Louisiana State Police and the State Office of Technology Services by these local districts. In 2017 the Louisiana state governor established the Louisiana Cybersecurity Commission to help educate, prepare for events such as these, and provide a key hand in remediating damage and recovering from such an attack. Various state agencies are now coordinating on this attack, gathering additional data, and communicating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
All in all, like many other city, municipality, or state directed attacks, this attack may be quite expensive to clean-up and remediate. Lost productivity cannot always be calculated easily but we see from other major reports that it can be substantial. Lost funds may have been used for actual payment of the ransomware attack, and for recovery of data, which sometimes may be required even if the ransom is paid.
External cyber consultants, accountants, and a myriad of other staffers are often required to assist with the recovery of data and resumption of normal services.
It’s Deja Vu all over again!
Remember th ..
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