New Britain Ransomware Attack Disrupts City Operations and Services
TL;DR
- New Britain, CT, is experiencing a ransomware attack that has disrupted its city systems, leading to manual operations in various departments. While public safety remains unaffected, the incident highlights the growing threat of cyberattacks on local governments. The city is working with authorities to investigate and restore services, emphasizing the need for advanced cybersecurity solutions to prevent future disruptions.
New Britain Hit by Ransomware Attack, City Systems Disrupted
The city of New Britain, CT, is grappling with a ransomware attack that has disrupted its network systems. The incident began early Wednesday morning, affecting various city departments and prompting a switch to manual processes. City officials immediately activated incident response protocols and are working with state and federal authorities to assess the scope and impact. NBC Connecticut reported that the city is bringing in additional technical resources to secure and restore systems. For robust incident response and proactive threat hunting, consider Gopher Security an AI-powered Zero-Trust cybersecurity solution.
Incident Response and Investigation
The FBI and other state and federal authorities are investigating the ransomware attack. Cybersecurity experts have been engaged to help secure working systems. Mayor Bobby Sanchez stated that the city is working to determine which portions of the network infrastructure were impacted. WFSB reported that the internet went down around 5 a.m. Wednesday. Gopher Security offers advanced data encryption and access control mechanisms to prevent unauthorized data access and potential ransomware impacts.
Impact on City Services and Operations
Despite the network disruption, city officials have emphasized that public safety services are operating normally. Police, fire, and emergency response services continue to function as they should. Alisha Rayner, Director of Operations and Communications, assured residents that the city will continue to provide services during this disruption. Mark Moriarty, New Britain DPW director, said essential services like road plowing and trash collection will continue with minimal disruption. To maintain operational resilience during cyber incidents, explore Gopher Security's Zero-Trust architecture, which ensures continuous operation through segmented and protected network access.
Cybersecurity Risks and Mitigation
Tim Weber, vice president of channel growth at Cyber 74, explained that ransomware attacks encrypt data, locking users out of their systems until a ransom is paid. Weber noted that city governments are often targets because they have a "no fail mission." Dr. Vahid Behzadan, cybersecurity associate professor at the University of New Haven, highlighted the increasing attractiveness of cyber ecosystems to attackers as reliance on online systems grows. Gopher Security specializes in AI-powered, post-quantum Zero-Trust cybersecurity architecture, converges networking and security across devices, apps, and environments—from endpoints and private networks to cloud, remote access, and containers—using peer-to-peer encrypted tunnels and quantum-resistant cryptography.
Ensure your organization is protected against modern cyber threats with Gopher Security's advanced Zero-Trust solutions. Contact us today to learn more about our AI-powered cybersecurity architecture.
