Winston-Salem City Manager Pat Pate said Friday that city information systems are up and running following a cyber-disruption on Dec. 26, but that more work needs to be done before everything's turned back on for public access.
While working as fast as possible to restore systems, Pate said, the city is not rushing the repair because officials want to make sure it's done right.
"As we bring things online, we're reviewing and evaluating all our security tools, our security processes and all our product protocols to ensure that the public is protected as we move forward," Pate told reporters in a 1 p.m. Friday news conference at City Hall.
For most city residents, the disruption means the city is still unable to take online payments, although customers can pay in person at the Stuart Municipal Building at 100 E. First St.
Pate said the city has no evidence that the unauthorized access resulted in any disclosure of the personal information of employees or city customers. But Pate did say that the potential for any disclosure remains at the heart of criminal investigative efforts that are ongoing.
Despite talk one hears about the intrusion being a push for ransom by bad actors, Pate said the city has not heard from the person or persons who gained the unauthorized access, nor has the city been presented with any demands.
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Pate said that following North Carolina law, the city would not engage in any contact with anyone claiming responsibility for the disruption.
Pate said rumors are untrue that city police, fire and utility operations have been affected.
"These departments are conducting business as usual and are not impacted," Pate said. "There are also some questions about planning services. Since the cyber incident, we have issued over 1,100 permits and have completed over 2,500 inspections. Our planning staff continues to operate to provide their services to the community."
When city officials detected on Dec. 26 that someone had gained unauthorized access to city computer systems, the city decided to disconnect computer systems from outside access to make sure no further access could occur, Pate said.
If there's a plus side to anything that's happened, Pate said, the city may have "the safest local government network in the United States at this time."
"Our IS (information systems) team has been able to push out all completely new upgrades and updates to our systems that are being brought back online, so that we will have the latest security measures for all our systems," Pate said.
Pate said he doesn't know what the final cost will be to recover from the problem, but said the city does have insurance that can defray the cost.
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