The City of Fort Worth recently experienced a cyber-attack, yet after examining the leaked data, they stated that there is currently no indication that sensitive information about residents or staff is associated with this incident.
The city said that the data was not sensitive and would be made available to the public via a Public Information Request.
Specifics of the City of Forth Cyber-Attack
On June 23, the City of Fort Worth was made aware of a data breach. The Texas Department of Information Resources Computer Incident Response Team notified the City of an online posting; the posting was made public.
According to the post, someone broke into the City’s website and stole data related to the City of Fort Worth. In their online release, the hackers included links to copies of the data.
The data was from a “Vueworks application” that was part of an internal information system. Vueworks streamlines work orders for the Transportation & Public Works and Property Management departments.
“The hackers downloaded attachments to work orders, including photos, spreadsheets, invoices, emails, PDF documents, and other material related to work orders”, according to its official website.
Reports mention that the data included in the attachments were not confidential and may be disclosed to the public in response to a Public Information Request.
No Proof That Sensitive Information Was Accessed
The group appears to have obtained login details for the VueWorks system to download this data; however, it is yet unknown how the group got these credentials.
It is significant to note that there is no indication that the City server, database, or disc storage was accessed to obtain the data.
Furthermore, there is no proof that any other systems were accessed, nor is there any proof that private information like social security numbers, credit card numbers, or financial information was obtained or leaked.
The city’s information technology department has blocked the asset management system from outside access and has also contacted VueWorks for vendor help. Hence, the users are asked to reset their passwords.
Method of Access Has Been Fixed
Finally, according to their official statement, there is no longer any ongoing unauthorized access to the City of Fort Worth computer systems since the access method has been fixed.
Furthermore, there is still no proof that private information was made public. There hasn’t been any data encryption or loss of access to computing systems or data. The City of Fort Worth has not been held as ransom. IT activities in the city are back to normal.
Source: https://cybersecuritynews.com/texas-city-website-hacked/
