October 26, 2023 at 12:21PM
Kansas officials are investigating a massive computer outage in the state’s courts, which has been ongoing for two weeks. While the officials have not provided details, experts believe it could be a ransomware attack. The disruption has forced attorneys to use paper filing and has slowed down the entire court system. State-focused attacks have been less frequent, making the situation in Kansas unique. The investigation is ongoing, and no ransomware group has claimed responsibility yet. The outage has affected electronic filings, case management, and public access to records.
According to the meeting notes, Kansas officials have described the ongoing computer outage that has affected the state’s courts for two weeks as a “security incident” and experts believe it may be a ransomware attack. The outage has caused disruptions such as attorneys being unable to search online records and having to file motions on paper. It has slowed down the court system and created a backlog of paper documents that will need to be processed eventually. Ransomware attacks targeting court systems have been relatively rare at the state level, with the situation in Kansas being particularly severe. The Judicial Branch is treating the matter as a high priority and an investigation is ongoing. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation, along with federal partners, is examining the issue. No ransomware group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but experts believe it is highly likely to be a ransomware incident. The incident has not affected Johnson County, which operates its own computer systems. The state had been transitioning to a new online court system, but the rollout has been impeded by the attack. Moving to a statewide system has both advantages and disadvantages from a security perspective. While it can provide more resources for protection, a successful attack can cause a statewide outage rather than affecting individual counties or municipalities. Two recent audits of other state agencies have pointed out weaknesses in IT security practices. The court system’s outage has rendered electronic filings, payments, case management, public access to records, electronic filing for protection orders, and electronic marriage license applications unavailable. While some judges have been able to rely on paper files to continue their work, others have been forced to postpone trials. The outage in Wyandotte County, which experienced a similar incident last year, has caused some delays but trials are still proceeding. Older attorneys are in high demand as they assist younger attorneys in adapting to filing with paper and using faxes. Despite the challenges, the wheels of justice are still turning, albeit at a different pace and in a different manner.