Cambridge prioritizes cyber security post-Hamilton cyber attack

TLDR:

• The City of Cambridge is prioritizing cyber security after recent attacks in Hamilton
• Chief information officer, Mohammad Mamun, emphasizes the importance of protecting sensitive data and private information

After recent cyber attacks on Ontario municipalities, including Hamilton, the City of Cambridge is taking proactive steps to enhance its cyber security measures. Chief information officer, Mohammad Mamun, stresses the importance of safeguarding sensitive data and private information of Cambridge residents. The city is implementing best practices such as policy development, 24/7 IT system monitoring, awareness training, multi-factor authentication, regular software patching, and security assessments. In the event of an attack, the city has backup systems in place to ensure the continuity of essential services. The focus on cyber security incident response planning aims to restore systems efficiently with the activation of the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC).

The recent ransomware attack on the City of Hamilton, which disrupted online services for weeks, serves as a stark reminder of the potential risks municipalities face. While the City of Hamilton chose not to pay the ransom, the City of Stratford had previously paid $75,000 to unlock data in a similar incident. Although Cambridge does not disclose its stance on paying ransom fees, it is prepared with backup systems and an incident response plan to mitigate the impact of cyber attacks. The city remains committed to exploring new ways to enhance security for residents and the community at large.