Ransomware attacks against local governments are an increasingly common occurrence in recent years. According to a recent report, 330 ransomware attacks have been carried out against government systems over the past four years, with more than half a million individual records affected. These attacks also often disrupt essential services, such as online portals and payment systems. This can have serious consequences for local governments, as well as for those who rely on the services they provide.
Recent Attacks on Local Governments Highlight the Need for Stronger Cybersecurity Measures
There have been several recent ransomware attacks against local government organizations in the U.S. in recent years.
- In August 2019, in a coordinated attack, 22 municipalities in Texas were simultaneously infiltrated by hackers, resulting in significant impact to their computer systems and disruption to local services.
- In December 2019, the city of Pensacola, Florida, was hit by a ransomware attack that impacted its email and phone systems and online payment systems.
- In May 2021, the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was hit by a ransomware attack that impacted more than 18,000 city files, some of them including information such as names, dates of birth, addresses, and driver’s licenses.
- Just this month, the city of Oakland, California, was hit by a ransomware attack that exposed personal confidential data and took down the city’s computer systems for weeks.
The FBI’s Cyber Crime Center noted that “phishing emails, Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) exploitation, and exploitation of software vulnerabilities” were “the top initial infection vectors for ransomware attacks in 2022.
The aftermath of attacks such as these makes one thing clear: local governments need stronger cybersecurity measures and more robust vulnerability and risk assessment. With continuous vulnerability scanning and comprehensive endpoint management, local governments can reduce their attack surface and give criminals one less entry point to launch an attack.
Limited Resources Pose a Challenge for Maintaining Secure IT Infrastructure
Consistently tight budgets have left local governments particularly vulnerable to ransomware attacks. Many local government organizations must use older hardware and software because they do not have the luxury of upgrading to newer technology. This can lead to systems and applications that may no longer be supported by vendors, with vendors supplying security updates or patches. Limited staffing resources have only compounded this issue, leaving many local government agencies unable to keep up with patching and other IT or security operations such as regular vulnerability scanning.
Many local government organizations have limited resources, small IT teams, and tight budgets, which make it difficult to keep up with the maintenance and support of current and older systems. With more devices being used to get work done, hastened by the pandemic and work-from-home initiatives, many IT and security teams don’t have a clear picture of how many devices are connected to the enterprise, much less whether those devices are up-to-date on patches and other security measures. This means they cannot monitor the health of devices accessing sensitive information, scan for potential issues on the devices, deploy patches, or enforce security controls that would limit their attack surface and reduce their exposure to these types of attacks.
While there are many challenges local governments face in managing and securing their endpoints, it is crucial that they do so. The best way for government organizations to prevent crippling cyber-attacks like ransomware is to implement best practices around patch management and vulnerability scanning.
Leveling the Playing Field
While attackers are targeting local governments more frequently due to outdated and vulnerable systems and limited resources, this does not mean that government organizations must be victims. Tools that consolidate management and security with automation can make these organizations less vulnerable to cyberattacks and reduce the burden on their budgets and staff. By implementing these measures with a tool that does the work for them, they can ensure their systems and sensitive data remain secure and protected.
Implementing best practices around patch management and vulnerability scanning is particularly important in these environments. Older devices may have unpatched operating system vulnerabilities or use software that has reached end-of-life from vendors that no longer release updates, leaving the devices exposed to risk. This does not mean that they should simply be left as-is, though. Other mitigations, especially policy-based security controls, can help reduce the risk from older devices and applications. Unified security and endpoint management (USEM) tools make it easy to implement these best practices by enabling patch management best practices, regularly scanning for vulnerabilities, and remediating vulnerabilities automatically. This ensures that the devices employees use to work and access sensitive data are managed and secure, while cutting off device access if it does not have the proper management and security profile.
Automating vulnerability scanning and patch management can make local governments less of a target for attackers. When vulnerabilities are quickly identified and addressed and software is regularly updated, the risk of a successful cyberattack is significantly reduced, making governments less likely targets in the future.
Find out how Syxsense helps local governments strengthen cybersecurity measures and keep endpoints secure. Schedule a demo today.
