Arizona Supreme Court says hackers stole residents’ personal data
The Arizona Supreme Court announced Friday that the state’s court system was attacked by hackers who stole the personal information of “many Arizonans.”
Arizona Supreme Court Chief Justice Ann Scott Timmer said in a statement that the state court system was targeted by criminal hackers “or their bots.”
“Court leaders believe the criminal hackers copied personally identifiable information about many Arizonans,” Timmer said. “The Supreme Court’s Administrative Office of the Courts is in the process of alerting as many people as possible whose information it believes the criminal hackers copied.”
A spokesperson for the court system told Recorded Future News that the incident did not involve ransomware and the hackers have not issued ransom demands for the stolen data as of Monday.
Timmer said the court would not release further details about the incident because they may impact the investigation into the attack.
“I personally spoke with the topranking FBI leader in the state, and I pledged our full commitment to supporting their investigation and minimizing the likelihood that the information will be used to further jeopardize Arizonans,” she added. “We’re in touch with those affected and will share more information as soon as we’re able.”
No hacking group has publicly taken credit for the attack.
Court systems continue to bear the brunt of state-level cyberattacks due to the troves of sensitive personal information and law enforcement data held on judicial servers. A ransomware attack shut down nearly all of Kansas’ court systems in 2023 and took months to fully resolve.
State and municipal courts in California, Nebraska, South Carolina, Florida, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Ohio, Missouri and Illinois have all faced a variety of ransomware attacks, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) incidents and data breaches over the last four years.
In November, ransomware attackers breached the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, snarling the state’s court system for nearly a month and forcing courts to provide time extensions for certain criminal and civil cases.
The organization responsible for managing real estate and civil court filings in Georgia was also hit with ransomware in November.
References in this story
- Kansas courts closed, electronic systems down after alleged ransomware attack therecord.media Courts in the city of Topeka are closed to the public on Monday, while the Kansas Supreme Court is exclusively using paper records to operate.
- Recovery from cyberattack ‘on the horizon,’ Kansas Supreme Court chief justice says therecord.media During her State of the Judiciary speech, Chief Justice Marla Luckert said a ransomware gang based in Russia carried out the attack, which limited court operations in 104 counties.
- California court suffering from tech outages after cyberattack therecord.media The San Joaquin County Superior Court said nearly all of its digital services have been knocked offline due to a cyberattack that began earlier this week.
- Several US states investigating ‘SiegedSec’ hacking campaign therecord.media Officials in multiple states are investigating claims by a suspected politically motivated hacking group that websites connected to local governments were breached or defaced.
- Florida court pauses many proceedings following cyberattack therecord.media In a statement posted on its website, Florida’s First Judicial Circuit confirmed that “an information technology security event” was causing issues, prompting an investigation that is currently ongoing.
- Wisconsin court system affected by DDoS incident therecord.media Wisconsin’s state court system was hit with a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack this week, affecting their computer network.
- LockBit ransomware used in attack on Ohio town’s court, police department and more therecord.media The city of Mount Vernon, Ohio said its police department, municipal court and other government offices were affected by a ransomware attack.
- Cyberattack on Kansas town affects email, phone, payment systems therecord.media The City of Pittsburg, Kansas, is one of several local governments responding to cybersecurity incidents in recent weeks.
- DDoS attack on Pennsylvania court system knocks out filing systems, bail payment site therecord.media Pennsylvania’s court system was hit with a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack and is experiencing disruptions, according to Chief Justice Debra Todd.
- Pennsylvania attorney general says SSNs stolen during August ransomware attack therecord.media Social Security numbers and medical information were among the data stolen in an August breach of the networks of Pennsylvania's attorney general, officials said.
- Georgia court filing organization warns of outages after ransomware allegations therecord.media The Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority (GSCCCA) said it is experiencing a “credible and ongoing cybersecurity threat” that forced the organization to temporarily restrict access to its website and…
- Advanced Cyber Threat Intelligence | Recorded Future www.recordedfuture.com Get real-time, actionable cyber threat intelligence with Recorded Future. Mitigate cyber risks, prioritize threats, and proactively secure your organization.
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- jon greig (@jgreigj) on X twitter.com @TheRecord_Media cybersecurity reporter. formerly @zdnet @cambodiadaily @haitiantimes_ — send tips to [email protected] or signal: jgreig.51
- jon greig (@jgreig.bsky.social) bsky.app cybersecurity reporter for The Record. formerly: zdnet, techrepublic, blavity, haitian times, cambodia daily — send tips to [email protected] or signal: jgreig.51
