Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert confirmed that the hackers who compromised the Kansas judicial branch in October is a Russian-based ransomware group during the annual State of the Judiciary speech on Wednesday.
A forensic examination confirmed that the group exfiltrated some data, but Luckert said the courts are still determining what and whose personal information was stolen. However, court systems are now returning to the centralized case management systems now that cybersecurity experts have enhanced security measures.
Since the attacks, courts have relied on old-school paper filing for court documents.
“As I speak, electronic filing is being restored in some districts. The remaining districts should have e-filing restored over the next two weeks. We are optimistic that the full functionality of our systems, including appellate e-filing, is on the near horizon,” Luckert said.
Luckert said the courts didn’t pay any ransom to the hackers and that cybersecurity experts may not have specifically targeted Kansas when breaching the data.
“I don’t think Kansas was a target, at least as the experts tell us these criminals don’t necessarily target anyone or anything. It just happens that some way that they’re able to gain a method of access,” Lukert said.
The data breach delayed processes for courts and created a backlog. Now, though, the backlog is primarily transferring paper records into the e-filing system, and it isn’t slowing down the court process.
The data breach comprised about half of the chief justice’s speech, but she also highlighted other updates in the Kansas judicial branch, such as the following:
- New mental health treatment courts across the state that redirect individuals from criminal punishments to treatment-based solutions.
- Veteran treatment courts in in Leavenworth, Sedgwick and Shawnee counties.
- Family treatment courts specializing in treatment for households with a parent suffering from drug addiction.
- The creation and support of the Rural Justice Initiative, which seeks to find solutions to the lack of lawyers in rural Kansas.
- The increased salary of judicial branch employees and additional administrative and district court positions that Luckert said strengthens the court system.
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