Priya PatelTLDR:
- Officials in Bucks County, PA, have identified the ransomware group “Akira” as the culprits behind a cyberattack that took down the county’s computer-aided emergency dispatch system.
- Akira is a Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) group that has targeted various sectors, including finance, real estate, manufacturing, and healthcare.
- The attack has caused the county to lose automated services and hindered access to important databases for law enforcement.
- County officials are working with state and federal agencies to investigate the incident and get the systems back online.
Officials in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, have announced that they believe the ransomware group “Akira” is responsible for the cyberattack that took down the county’s computer-aided emergency dispatch system. Last week, the system was crippled, affecting the ability of dispatchers, call-takers, and 911 operators to prioritize and record incident calls, identify responders’ status and location, and dispatch personnel efficiently.
The Department of Homeland Security defines the computer-aided emergency dispatch system as an essential tool for emergency services. County officials have shared with their local, state, and federal partners that “Akira” was involved in the attack to facilitate situational awareness and review of their own systems.
Akira is a Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) group that began operations in March 2023. The Department of Health and Human Services states that the group has targeted various sectors, including finance, real estate, manufacturing, and healthcare. Typically, the group demands ransom payments in its cyberattacks.
The cyberattack has had significant consequences for Bucks County. Without the computer-aided emergency dispatch system, automated services powered by CAD (computer-aided dispatch) are lost, and law enforcement officials cannot access databases for the Commonwealth Law Enforcement Assistance Network and the National Crime Information Center.
County officials are currently collaborating with state and federal partner agencies to investigate the incident further. Additionally, the county’s IT department is working to restore the offline systems as soon as possible. However, as of now, there is no projected timeframe for when the services might resume.
