Security gaps leave local governments vulnerable to a variety of cyber threats


Cities and counties are beefing up their IT security, and that makes sense, says Augustine Boateng, interim chief information officer (CIO) in Memphis, Tenn.

“It’s important to note that local governments have developed a reputation over the years for having lackluster cybersecurity; and not without good reason. As a result, we’re seeing more and more cyberattacks targeting cities, counties, and the like.” Boateng lists the following IT weaknesses that are sometimes found in local government technology departments:

Read more…
Source: American City & County News


Sign up for our Newsletter


Related:

  • U.S. DOD strategy warns emerging tech is ‘at the forefront’ of information threats

    November 21, 2023

    The Pentagon publicly released its strategy for operating in the information environment – which covers both physical and digital sources of information – on Friday, outlining how the agency plans to modernize its collecting, processing and sharing of data to better counteract adversaries’ weaponization of the internet and emerging technologies. DOD “must embrace a cultural shift ...

  • #StopRansomware: LockBit 3.0 Ransomware Affiliates Exploit CVE 2023-4966 Citrix Bleed Vulnerability

    November 21, 2023

    The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Multi-State Information Sharing & Analysis Center (MS-ISAC), and Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Center (ASD’s ACSC) are releasing this joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) to disseminate IOCs, TTPs, and detection methods associated with LockBit 3.0 ransomware exploiting CVE-2023-4966, labeled Citrix Bleed, affecting Citrix ...

  • Binance CEO pleads guilty to money laundering charges

    November 21, 2023

    The Binance chief executive, Changpeng Zhao, has resigned after pleading guilty to money laundering violations. The Justice Department said it was requiring Binance, the largest crypto-exchange in the world, to pay $4.3bn (£3.4bn) in penalties and forfeitures. It said Binance had helped users bypass sanctions across the world. Read more… Source: BBC News  

  • Hackers accessed sensitive health data of Welltok patients

    November 20, 2023

    Hackers accessed the personal data of more than a million people by exploiting a security vulnerability in a file transfer tool used by Welltok, the healthcare platform owned by Virgin Pulse. Welltok, a Denver-based patient engagement company that works with healthcare plans to provide communications to subscribers about their healthcare, confirmed in a data breach notification ...

  • K-12 schools improve protection against online attacks, but many are vulnerable to ransomware gangs

    November 19, 2023

    Some K-12 public schools are racing to improve protection against the threat of online attacks, but lax cybersecurity means thousands of others are vulnerable to ransomware gangs that can steal confidential data and disrupt operations. Since a White House conference in August on ransomware threats, dozens of school districts have signed up for free cybersecurity services, ...

  • Scattered Spider

    November 16, 2023

    The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) are releasing this joint Cybersecurity Advisory (CSA) in response to recent activity by Scattered Spider threat actors against the commercial facilities sectors and subsectors. This advisory provides tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) obtained through FBI investigations as recently as November 2023. Scattered Spider ...