CITY OF OAK RIDGE RECOVERING AFTER MALWARE ATTACK
MARCH 31, 2023
The City of Oak Ridge will gradually return to regular operations in the coming weeks.
The City of Oak Ridge computer systems were attacked last week, by a sophisticated group of criminals. The attack involved the insertion of malicious programs, often called “malware” or “computer viruses,” into the City’s computer network.
CITY OF OAK RIDGE RECOVERING AFTER MALWARE ATTACK
Published: March 31, 2023
The City of Oak Ridge will gradually return to regular operations in the coming weeks.
The City of Oak Ridge computer systems were attacked last week, by a sophisticated group of criminals. The attack involved the insertion of malicious programs, often called “malware” or “computer viruses,” into the City’s computer network.
The attack affected computers across the City and immediately upon discovery of the attack, the City shut down the entire computer network to minimize the damage. All business practices were brought to a standstill, including web services and emails the community uses for routine service requests. Phones were not affected, although voicemail is currently not available.
Specialists were brought in immediately to help with our response and recovery efforts, and over the past week, they have worked tirelessly, side-by-side with City staff, to clean and restore systems.
At this time, there is no evidence that any credit card information or taxpayer or utility customer information was compromised.
“Any breach of data will be disclosed to the affected parties, and we will work with them to limit any damage done,” said Deputy City Manager Jack Suggs. “No payments have been made to these criminals and the City is working closely with law enforcement to bring those responsible for this attack to justice.”
Fully restoring normal operations will be a slow process. Each of the hundreds of computers the City uses every day is being thoroughly evaluated, cleaned, repaired or replaced before being returned to service. This process can take up to several hours per computer. Assistance provided by several different groups has been of invaluable assistance, but complete restoration will still take several weeks.
The City is implementing additional security measures and protocols as it rebuilds its systems. In the meantime, customers are asked to be patient as services such as email and online permitting are restored slowly over the next few weeks.
A temporary webpage at the City’s website, OakRidgeTN.gov, has been created and lists the phone numbers to all City services and departments. Residents are encouraged to reach out to the City here and on City social media channels.
Additional information will be shared as it becomes available.