St. Helena, a city in Northern California, faced a cyberattack, prompting officials to shut down its computer systems and public library as a precautionary measure. The city is collaborating with the Northern California Computer Crimes Task Force and other law enforcement cybersecurity experts to investigate the incident. Initial assessments suggest that over 20 computers and a network server may have been compromised in the attack, which began around 1:30 a.m. on Monday.
Notably, the antivirus system successfully blocked numerous attacks, similar to ones experienced by other cities in California, like Oakley, which was targeted in February. Further irregularities in the computer network were noticed around 7 a.m., prompting city staff to alert the IT contractor. Subsequently, administrators from the city’s Emergency Operations Center convened at 9:30 a.m., leading to the closure of the St. Helena Public Library due to suspicious network activity.
While the city’s cloud systems house sensitive data for employees, businesses, and residents, officials confirm that all city files were backed up as part of the cybersecurity and business continuity plan. Despite the backups, it may take up to 72 hours for cybersecurity experts to clear the systems and restore the backed-up files. Fortunately, water and wastewater plants, as well as emergency services, remain unaffected as they operate on separate networks, ensuring continuity of essential services for residents.
