WINONA, Minn. (WXOW) — Winona County paid more than $128,000 to resolve a ransomware attack detected in January, and officials are now investigating a second, unrelated attack from April.
The county detected ransomware on its computer network on Jan. 22. Officials took immediate action to investigate and engaged third-party forensic experts and federal law enforcement, according to a press release.
On May 12, the county provided written notification to impacted individuals, as well as notification on its website and to the media regarding the January ransomware incident.
After careful consideration and guidance from its cybersecurity team, Winona County negotiated and paid a fee of $128,539.57 with assistance from its insurance carrier. Officials said making the payment was a difficult choice but determined it was the necessary approach to best serve the interests of Winona County residents and employees.
On Apr. 7, the county detected separate and unrelated ransomware on its computer network. Once again, officials immediately launched an investigation with assistance from nationally recognized third-party cybersecurity and data forensics consultants, the release said.
The county also notified federal law enforcement and the appropriate state agencies.
While Winona County has invested in the security of its digital data and computer network, these incidents have shown that sophisticated criminal actors continue to pose an ongoing threat to all computer network systems, according to the release. The commissioners assured citizens that aggressive measures have been and will continue to be taken to minimize the risk of a similar event occurring again.
Winona County is conducting a comprehensive review of the affected data from the April incident to determine what information was involved and who was impacted. If officials determine that an individual’s Social Security number or driver’s license number was impacted by this incident, their notification letter will also contain an offer of complimentary credit monitoring and related services.
