Foster City declares state of emergency following ransomware attack
By CBS Bay Area
Leaders in the community of Foster City declared a state of emergency as a cyberattack continues to hold the city’s network hostage.
The city council approved the state of emergency during a special meeting Monday night, with no Zoom or online access, as the network remains shut down.
“The city has kind of been keeping us in the dark. I mean, we don’t know what got affected, what departments are affected, how it affects us,” said Yiming Luo, the only resident who showed up to speak out about the hack, which happened on March 19.
While the network is offline, 911 operations are up and running and emergency response personnel are available, officials said Monday. City Hall is open to the public, but only with limited services.
Since the attack occurred, CBS News Bay Area has been reaching out to learn what potentially sensitive information could be compromised. The city has not provided details, and during Monday night’s special meeting, not a single councilmember spoke when the city decided to declare an emergency proclamation.
“And the fact that they’re not willing to talk about it is kind of sketchy. They should be open and transparent with us, so I hope they can give us some new details soon,” Luo said.
Mayor Art Kiesel declined to comment on camera but told CBS News Bay Area reporter Kevin Ko that he has full confidence in the city’s investigation. Kiesel, along with other councilmembers, are currently advised to not speak publicly about the ransomware attack.
For now, the 33,000 people who call Foster City home are left to wonder if they were affected, at all.
With the proclamation of a local emergency, the city will now be eligible to receive expedited assistance and resources.
Both San Mateo County and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services have been notified.
Other communities in the Bay Area that have experienced ransomware attacks in recent years include Oakland, Hayward and St. Helena.
