The extent of the damage caused by the computer attack on the Seville City Council, whose server was completely blocked since Tuesday, is unknown, as is the time it will take to find the solution to the problem, something that “will not be immediate”. . This was announced today at a press conference by Juan Bueno, Treasury, Citizen Security and Digital Transformation delegate, who has called for calm until the working group in charge of the case can make a definitive report determining whether the personal data of the citizens of the city have been affected or not. “The damage can be at any level,” he explained, although he considers that, as far as is known, “it is not excessively serious.”
What has been confirmed is that the hackers, a Dutch group calling themselves LockBit, have sent the council “several encrypted messages” requesting a ransom of 1.5 million euros, although, apparently, the criminals encrypted in “5 million dollars for damages” that could be caused to the Seville town hall.
But the local government insists that they will not negotiate with cybercriminals to recover computer services and systems, and they trust that a solution can be found “as soon as possible” to be operational again. “We apologize to the citizens, but the wait will have to be carried out during the time that the experts tell us. The solution is not immediate. We are not going to be called out of haste,” declared the plenary spokesman.
The Digital Transformation delegate, on the other hand, has announced that no complaint has yet been filed about this cyberattack, which is already being investigated by the National Cryptological Center (CCN-CERT) in collaboration with the National Police, on the “recommendation of the investigators”, the same ones who, as he explained, have reported that criminals “advance with a first attack so that the administrations relax and then act forcefully”.
Faced with this critical situation, the consistory calls for “prudence and caution.” First, he explained Well, you have to know the extent of the damage and then, in a second phase, find a solution with which to return to normality. “We are in good hands,” he declared, referring to the group of experts that works day and night on this matter.
What is known with certainty is from which computer the pirates managed to enter the system and jeopardize the security of the city and its neighbors. “The origin” is a municipal computer, and now the scope and condition will be evaluated “team by team”.
It was yesterday when the server of the municipal services of the Seville city council was completely paralyzed. It had suffered a cyberattack and, as a “precaution”, the service was interrupted until it was possible to find out “its origin and scope”, commented the delegate of the Treasury, Citizen Security and Digital Transformation, Juan Bueno. It then returned to the analog era when many procedures had to be carried out over the counter as the only way, since it was impossible to carry out any digital management. Communications with the Local Police force or the Fire Brigade have also been affected, which now record incidents by hand due to the impossibility of accessing the digital system.
A day later, the situation has not changed. Of course, those responsible for the situation, who would have had access to the personal data of citizens, have already requested a ransom to release the systems, a “usual practice” to which, apparently, the City Council is not willing to cede. . “In no case will they negotiate with criminals,” they affirm from the consistory.
A year ago, there was another alleged scam against the Seville City Council, in this case, for the “impersonation of the company that was awarded the Christmas lights contract to charge for the service.” The cybercriminals then opted for a ‘Man in the Middle’ attack through which they requested payment for these services, which amounted to one million euros, in another bank account. The payment, made by the municipal Treasury, was lost and forced a readjustment in the local budget.
