Why U.S. Cities are a Major Target for Cyber Attacks

A former cyber attacker writes about why city governments are appealing targets for malicious cyber operations. For one, the potential impact of targeting a city is huge. In addition to the normal “benefits” of getting access to private customer data, credit cards and so on, penetrating a city may give attackers access to sensitive information about residents. Depending on the local-government agency and its IT structure, attackers can access and impact a variety of systems, including those associated with critical infrastructure. Secondly, cities are vulnerable. Their size, organizational structure, public-sector bureaucracy and the fact that they communicate with a wide variety of organizations and individuals make them an easy target. Many U.S. cities are comprised of multiple departments and units, using different technological platforms and various policies and processes. In addition, some cities use legacy systems that are not as secure as newer, more modern systems or do not integrate with innovative security solutions. Read the article at GCN.