(TNS) — Coweta’s city manager said a cyberattack affecting city computers that was identified last week should mostly be resolved within the next few days.
“There has been no financial loss for anyone with utility payments,” said Coweta City Manager Julie Casteen.
She also added that the city itself has not suffered any financial loss of which she is aware since Aug. 5, when Coweta experienced a systemwide ransomware attack.
“We immediately engaged our contracted IT provider and additional cybersecurity professionals to secure our systems, prevent further intrusion, and begin the recovery process,” a news release from the city said.
The attack affected all city computers, files and computer-based services, except the city website and a third-party online billing portal, the release said.
Emergency services, including 911, are operating normally.
“It’s important to know that credit card and other payment data are not kept on city servers and were not accessed in this attack,” the release said, which Casteen confirmed on Monday.
“We are working with outside cybersecurity attorneys and IT experts to recover our systems and assess what other data, if any, was accessed,” the release said.
Casteen said a ransom was demanded via a city employee who was typing an email “and then someone else just came in (through the computer) … and started typing for her.”
Casteen said no specific amount of money was demanded.
“It was like there was someone else there, typing,” she said.
Casteen said the FBI has been contacted regarding the attack, but she said, “I think they might be able to figure out how it was done, but not who did it.”
Since 2020, the population of the Tulsa suburb in Wagoner County has increased 18.3%, or from 9,696 in 2020 to 11,472 in 2025, according to U.S. Census Bureau data, making it one of the fastest growing cities in the state.
The estimated financial loss worldwide from cyberattacks is in the trillions of dollars.
The figure this year is set to be $10.2 trillion, with 2,200 daily cyberattacks, according to the Oklahoma Cyber Innovation Institute at the University of Tulsa.
“Everyone is going to get hit at some point,” Casteen said. “You’ve just got to have the right people who can know how to deal with it.”
She also added, “We’re putting in a lot more security measures.”
Coweta’s ransomware attack, she said, is being analyzed and addressed by a private, outside consulting company and not by city staff, she said.
Casteen declined to name the IT company getting to the bottom of the cyberattack, saying its contract involved security agreements.
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