City of Dallas reports 99.9% recovery post-major cyberattack

Dallas, Texas - In a recent detailed report addressing the cyberattack on its digital framework, the City of Dallas officials have indicated a near-total system recovery, with a 99.9% restoration rate.

Yet, the amount of data extracted during this breach is significant. An estimated 1.169 terabytes of digital files, including individual records, were removed, equivalent to hundreds of thousands of separate files, say leading cybersecurity professionals.

Jim McDade, President of the Dallas Fire Fighters Association, highlighted the sustained negative effect of this cyberattack on the city's emergency services.

“I think a lot of us have noticed a definite uptick in spam phone calls, spam emails and things like that,” McDade said.

McDade also expressed increased concerns over a notable rise in unsolicited communications aimed at first responders, suggesting a direct correlation between the attack and the subsequent spam and emails.

“We want to make sure that our members are fully protected now, and in the future,” he stated.

The city's comprehensive report further clarifies the breach's extent. Around 1,000 computing devices were infected with malware, and private data related to over 30,000 residents was exposed.

To address this, the report recommends a budget of $8.5 million to strengthen and upgrade the city's computer networks, reducing the risk of future intrusions.

However, Andrew Sternke, a distinguished cybersecurity expert, provides a more guarded viewpoint on this proposed budget. Sternke warns that the attackers, now armed with a substantial database, have the means to potentially infiltrate the system again.

“With that information, they could use various social engineering tactics to get into the systems,” Sternke commented. “They can pretend that they are the fire chief and use his personal identifiable information to get into the system.”

Thus, even with the city's planned major expenditure on cybersecurity, concerns persist about the effectiveness of these countermeasures, especially in light of Sternke's alarming analysis.

Credit: Dallas Metro News