The Port of San Diego, which had suffered from a ransomware attack last month, is still continuing to recover from the aftermath of the attack. While the Port itself has continued to operate perfectly fine, some of the IT systems remain offline— as of results coming in from last week.
The Port is also believed to be working with the state, regional, local and federal experts to think of ransomware removal methods and restore all systems. As part of this venture, they have also included the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI in the investigations.
Although the Port might not have been totally crippled, the attack significantly highlights the continuing threat of ransomware in the region and across the globe. Since the attack came shortly after the one at Port of Barcelona, we can expect further attacks of such nature in the future.
The Cyberattack
Reports of a cyberattack on the Port of San Diego first came out on Sept. 27. The reports came in relation to the attack on September 25, which disrupted the IT systems of the agency. The port initially noted that the normal operations will continue as usual, and this is an administrative issue.
“The Port remains open, public safety operations are ongoing, and ships and boats continue to access the Bay without impacts from the cybersecurity incident,” CEO Randa Coniglio from Port of San Diego said in a statement.
While the full amount of the ransom asked from the administration at the port has not been revealed yet, it is believed to be in bitcoins. The operations of the port suffered significant damage because of the attacks. The Union-Tribune mentioned that public records requests were taking infinitely longer to process and park permits weren’t available.
