Minnesota calls in national guard after capital city slammed by ‘digital attack’ | US news

The Minnesota called for the National Guard after the city of St Paul was criticized by what its mayor described as a “deliberate coordinated digital attack” led by sophisticated pirates.

Governor Tim Walz said in a statement that he deployed the guard, which has a cyber-protection component, because the attack had “exceeded the city’s response capacity”.

During a press conference on Tuesday, the mayor of St Paul, Melvin Carter, said that the city had “initiated a complete closure of our information systems as a defensive measure to contain the threat”, triggering WiFi breakdowns in city buildings, the disturbances of the city’s libraries and the suspension of network resources.

“Although these disturbances are difficult, these are necessary steps to limit exposure, preserve the integrity of the system and protect sensitive information,” he said.

The city first noticed a “suspicious activity” on its internal systems early in the morning of July 25, according to a press release from the office of the mayor of St Paul. The leaders of St Paul finally decided to restrict access to the targeted system, then closed the full network on Tuesday. Emergency services have not been compromised, said Carter.

Carter said the city had hired two companies to help manage the cleaning operation and worked with the FBI. He did not identify companies.

The precise nature of the attack has not been publicly disclosed. Paralyzing hacks that eliminate city services are a characteristic of ransomware incidents, in which hackers deploy data hatching software to paralyze the victims networks until a ransom payment is made.

“By working in close collaboration with heads of state and private cybersecurity experts, our teams quickly evolved to investigate, assess and contain the situation,” Carter said in prepared remarks.

Carter said that the survey was underway and that the city is still working to determine the access to and stolen. In the meantime, he has urged city employees to “take precautionary measures to protect their digital security, in their professional and personal life”.

The army brigadier, General Simon Schaefer, of the Minnesota National Guard, said in a statement that he provided support for cyber-protection at the city’s request.

An FBI spokesperson told Reuters that the agency was aware of the situation and in contact with city officials. “We are working with partners and loans our investigation expertise,” said the spokesperson.