Fergie's Tech Blog

Viruses Hit Minnesota State Court Network

Shannon Prather and Leslie Brooks Suzukamo write on TwinCities.com:

A pair of computer viruses — designed to allow unauthorized access for hackers — attacked the Minnesota judicial system's computer network, shutting down one of its case-management systems over the weekend.

Court officials say the viruses failed to open up a "back door" for hackers because they immediately crashed the case-management system they infected.

"No one took control of the network. No personal information was accessed," said state court spokesman Kyle Christopherson. "It ended up being an inconvenience more than anything else."

But the viruses did temporarily knock out the case-management system for 13 counties, including Ramsey, Anoka, Dakota and Washington. The case-management system stores a registry of actions for criminal and civil cases filed in Minnesota.

posted by Fergie @ 1/31/2007 11:42:00 AM