Kentucky: Library IT Staff at Daviess County Public Library Believes They Were “Targeted” in Ransomware Attack

From The Messenger-Inquirer:

Information technology staff at the Daviess County Public Library hope to have library patron operations up and running within the next two weeks, according to IT Manager Brian Lashbrook.

“My hope is that self-checks, patron catalogs, really all of it, will be up in roughly two weeks,” he said. “The reason that it takes so long is that our vendors are on a project schedule, but they are traditionally good about bumping us up.”

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T staff have been working with Innovative Interfaces, who provides the library’s check-in and cataloging service Polaris, as well Bowling Green-based consultant Innovative Solutions Through Technology to address current issues as well as better prepare for the future, Lashbrook said.

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The library was initially attacked on April 28. Their files were encrypted and held ransom by a form of ransomware called Cryptolocker for six bitcoins, or $30,947, which the library did not pay. Ultimately, the library was forced to close its doors May 7-9 to address issues and have employees re-inventory its more than 300,000 items. The issue has been at the forefront of the IT department’s duties this summer and has, in some ways, hurt the morale of both staff and patrons, Waller said.

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