CBS Miami reports that the City of North Miami Beach announced Friday that it had been impacted by ransomware.
The city’s statement:
North Miami Beach, FL (February 7, 2020) – On Tuesday, the North Miami Beach Police Department determined that it was impacted by ransomware. The Department immediately contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Secret Service, and the Miami-Dade Police Department, and an investigation is ongoing.
The most important thing to know is that there has been no interruption in public safety services in the City of North Miami Beach. Our Police Department continues to conduct all operations to keep our residents and streets safe, and citizen calls for assistance will continue to be responded to promptly. At this time, it appears that no other department or city service has been affected.
The ransomware was discovered by information technology personnel within the Police Department, who immediately took appropriate steps to shut down computer systems and draw on the expertise of the FBI and Secret Service. We continue to work closely with these federal partners, as well as the county police department and a third-party forensic investigator, to determine the extent and objectives of the attack and how best to address it. The City of North Miami Beach’s investigation will include an analysis to determine whether any resident’s, employee’s, or vendor’s personal information may have been subject to unauthorized access or acquisition.
The City of North Miami Beach takes this attack seriously, and is determined to take all steps necessary to protect itself and its citizens from those who would do them harm. No other information will be released at this time.
So far, I have not seen any particular threat actor(s) claiming responsibility for this one. Maze Team had claimed responsibility for Pensacola, but this one is not on the ransomware group’s website. DataBreaches.net has sent an inquiry to Maze Team asking if this is their doing and will update this post if a reply is received. A number of Florida cities have been hit with ransomware this past year, and not all by the same type of ransomware.