California city declares a ‘state of emergency’ after cyberattack on computer systems
The Suisun City council declared a state of emergency Saturday after a cyberattack forced the municipality to shut down its information technology network.
The attack affected the communication operations of the fire and police departments, including the routing of 911 calls.
Suisun City officials said in a statement that the attack posed no imminent threat to the public and that all public safety services remain active. The computer network was shut down to contain the threat and preserve evidence for a federal investigation.
Suisun City dispatchers are taking emergency police and fire calls through the Solano County dispatch center. Online city services and internal operations remained temporarily unavailable as of Sunday morning while cybersecurity experts investigate the incident and work to restore systems.
The attack is believed to be the first of its kind in the city of 30,000 located 55 miles north of San Francisco, as the threat of cybersecurity disruptions of essential services in local communities across the country grows.
Going after internet technologies that control communications in public safety agencies would be a new frontier for cyberattackers that federal agencies believe could be affiliated with Iran.
Federal agencies are investigating cyberattacks targeting municipal water systems in a dozen states. Late last month, the FBI, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency all warned that cyberattackers remotely accessed online infrastructure for water and wastewater systems in at least seven states.
The agencies warned that Iran-affiliated hackers were targeting internet-connected industrial controllers “to cause disruptive effects within the United States.”
Water systems in smaller communities depend on internet-connected automated systems, with many lacking the resources to provide adequate security. Thirty systems in Minnesota were affected by a cyberattack, with officials reporting dramatic drops in water levels before backup systems were activated.
In response to the attacks, a bipartisan group of lawmakers last week urged the restoration of federal funding for Department of Homeland Security programs designed to coordinate multi-state cybersecurity efforts.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office, in a statement to The Times, said that there is no evidence that California water systems were among those targeted in the recent spate of attacks. However, the governor’s office noted that state-by-state cybersecurity efforts are less effective than a coordinated federal response.
“Cyber threats do not stop at state lines, and no state can defend against them alone,” the governor’s office said. “Federal cuts to the nation’s cybersecurity workforce and critical programs have weakened the partnerships, threat intelligence and technical support that help protect essential services across the country. Reducing these capabilities while cyber threats continue to grow leaves every state, and the nation, less prepared for the next attack.”