Baltimore City has been in crisis: for more than three months city services have been hobbled by a ransomware attack. This is the second assault on Baltimore in two years and should be seen as a harbinger of threats to local governments. We have an opportunity to make cities more secure as they become more digital; in the process, we can create opportunities for marginalized young adults.

These attacks inform us of the many municipal functions and services that are now dependent upon technology. City services from public safety to water bills to public health services were all impacted. When real estate transactions were put on hold, it was a reminder of how vital government services are to commerce, and when police lost email and surveillance cameras, we were reminded how embedded IT is in the very safety of our citizenry. After 3 months, the city announced that it was once again capable of sending out water bills once again.

Baltimore isn’t alone in this predicament, which is why the federal government must take a much more active role in protecting local governments from cybersecurity threats. The impact on Baltimore City is among the most serious: arguably, years of underfunding and understaffing, coupled with frequent turnover in IT leadership, were contributing factors. And unlike a number of other recent ransomware attacks – in Lake City and Riviera Beach, Florida – Baltimore refused to pay the ransom. It was a principled stand for one city, but the highly publicized damage led other municipalities to pay far larger ransoms. Just this week, Texas officials announced that 22 municipalities had been hit with a ransomware attack. A Conference of Mayors resolution calls on cities to not pay ransoms, but in the end cities must consider the economics.

READ FULL ARTICLE HERE