The San Benito County Information Technology (IT) Department continues to make progress scanning all computers throughout the county system, according to an Aug. 31 press release from the San Benito County Administration Department.
Government computers were taken offline Aug. 18 after a malware virus was found in the system.Â
The department is verifying that computers are virus free and are adding additional anti-virus and security software. Email servers (in addition to some file servers and applications) are back online and accessible to county employees working on a clean computer connected to the county network. Employees are unable to access email through smartphone applications at this time, and as a result some employees could still lack access to email, the press release said.
As of 4 p.m. on Aug. 31, the IT department has brought over 100 computers back onto the network (the entire system is comprised of around 400 computers), the press release said. The department is expected to continue to scan remaining workstations, update software as needed, and ensure most if not all users are able to access email and the San Benito County network by Tuesday, Sept. 2.
The county is working to prioritize services and systems in order to continue providing public services. In the press release, the county apologized for any inconveniences caused by the malware issue.
“We have approached this incident with an abundance of caution to ensure that any and all personal data was protected, as well as ensure that no reinfection of the network occurred as systems were brought back online,” the press release stated.
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