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Key Points:
- The digital offerings of Long Beach Public Library have been brought back online after a cyber attack forced them offline in mid-November.
- The library’s online catalog, public computer labs, and printers, as well as public Wi-Fi, have been unavailable since the attack until December 15th, when services were officially restored.
Long Beach Public Library patrons recently regained access to the system’s digital offerings, including its online catalog and public computer labs, after they were taken offline in mid-November following a cyber attack against the city. The library’s online services were restored last week.
The city first identified the security incident on Nov. 14 and shortly after, took the majority of its official website’s connections, networks and systems offline in order to eliminate the cause of the breach. A stripped-down version of the city’s website — featuring basic information, such as city phone numbers and updates about the cyber attacks — was brought back online on Nov. 16. A day later, the City Council approved an emergency proclamation relating to the incident. That granted the city manager’s office additional powers to quickly respond to the incident. The main site, longbeach.gov, and a majority of departmental websites were also brought back online on Monday, Nov. 27, with access to online utility bill payments being restored on Monday, Dec. 4.
But the library system’s online catalog, public computer labs, and printers, as well as public Wi-Fi, have been unavailable at all branches since the start of the security incident — until Dec. 15. That’s when services were officially restored, according to a city announcement.
“Our digital amenities offered at Long Beach Public Library, like public computer labs and printing services, are a large part of our digital equity here in Long Beach,” Mayor Rex Richardson said in the announcement. “We understand these are critical services for many library patrons and we appreciate everyone’s patience while we worked to restore them.”
The LBPL’s digital resources, including public internet access, digital catalogs Libby and OverDrive, and the computer labs are now available for patrons at all branches during normal operating hours, the announcement said. Additional information and ongoing updates about any other impacts to public services and the community relating to the cyber incident, the city added, are available for residents at longbeach.gov/networksecurityincident.
