North Miami City Hall is set to reopen with limited services today following a cyberattack that took the municipal systems offline. It was closed after officials announced a "possible breach affecting our network systems," according to Hoodline.
The incident has affected various city operations, leaving residents dealing with delays and a temporary halt in certain services. Mayor Alix Desulme's personal Gmail account was also compromised in the attack, with sensitive information such as passport and financial details at risk, as reported by Local 10 News.
The city has restored some functions, including the North Miami Public Library and early voting processes, which continue to operate normally. However, the Special Magistrate Hearing scheduled for Wednesday was canceled and passport services have been postponed until further notice. As the North Miami Beach officials are working with local and federal authorities on the investigation, as per a statement obtained by CBS News Miami.
A hotline has been established for residents to call with questions, available at (305) 895-9804. While city hall is reopening, emergency services including the 911 call center, remain fully operational. Other services will operate with adjustments, such as accepting only cash payments in the Parks and Recreation Department. Reginald Andre, a cybersecurity expert, emphasized the need for investment in cybersecurity rather than merely IT support, in comments made to CBS News Miami.
This recent cyberattack is not an isolated incident in Florida, following last week's ransomware attack on the Orlando-based donation center OneBlood. Federally aided, the investigations into the breach are ongoing. "We want to emphasize that the investigation to determine the scope of impacted data remains ongoing," the city stated, according to CBS News Miami.
