The Superior Court of Los Angeles County announced on Friday evening that it was under a ransomware cybersecurity attack believed to be unrelated to the CrowdStrike issue and disabled all network systems to mitigate further harm throughout the weekend.
The cyber attack is believed to have taken place in the early morning hours on Friday and was identified by the Superior Court of Los Angeles County’s Court Technology Services Division, as a “serious security event in the court’s internal systems, which has now been determined to be a ransomware attack,” stated a news release.
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation a ransomware attack prevents access to computer files, systems and networks, and demands victims pay a ransom for the information to be returned. The attack can create detrimental disruptions to services and potentially the loss of critical information and data.
“Immediately upon discovery of the attack, the court disabled its network systems to mitigate further harm. The court’s network systems will remain disabled at least through the weekend to enable the court to further remediate the issue,” the news release said.
The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, local, state and federal law enforcement agencies are assisting in the investigation of the breach, added the release.
“At this time, the preliminary investigation shows no evidence of court users’ data being compromised,” it stated. “Over the past few years, the court has invested heavily in its cybersecurity operations, modernizing its cybersecurity infrastructure and making strategic staff investments in the Cybersecurity Division within CTS. As a result of this investment, the court was able to quickly detect an intrusion and address it immediately.”
Representatives with the L.A. County Superior Court could not be reached for additional comment on Saturday.
