City of Abilene files Catastrophe Notice due to cyber attack

ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) – The City of Abilene has filed a Catastrophe Notice due to a cyber attack.

The Catastrophe Notice was filed with the Office of Attorney General in order for the City of Abilene to suspended the requirements for the Public Information Act from April 22 to April 28.

This means that the cyber attack is preventing the City of Abilene from responding to Public Information Requests in a timely manner, which is usually required by law.

Since the suspension was approved, the City doesn’t have to worry about the time constraints on responding to requests until the suspension is over.

During Abilene’s City Council meeting Thursday, the sign language interpreter was missing as well as the live stream and computerized voting – all due to the cyber attack.

City Manager Mindy Patterson said the City first learned of the cyber attack April 18 around 4:00 a.m.

Out of an abundance of caution, industry experts and cyber security professionals were called in to address the issue, which is still ongoing.

Certain city services remain impacted, but the City of Abilene says emergency services are still up and running, as well as water. It’s mostly just areas of communication that are still experiencing problems.

CityLink as well as the Abilene Public Library are just a couple of the City Departments affected.

KTAB and KRBC have asked the City of Abilene multiple times about exactly which city services, departments, and functions are affected, but they say they are unable to comment further due to the ongoing investigation.

No further information is available at this time.