The City of Dallas’ public libraries are almost back up to full speed several months after a ransomware attack crippled many systems.
With the restoration of database functionality in late June, library services have begun returning to normal, according to the City. Residents are now able to digitally search the collection, request books, access online databases, and return books.
As reported by The Dallas Express, a cyberattack against Dallas on May 3 allegedly crippled many of the City’s departments, including the police and fire-rescue departments and even the public libraries.
In the subsequent months, City staff, at the direction of City Manager T.C. Broadnax, have apparently struggled to revive functions such as crime reporting, emergency vehicles dispatch capabilities, and more.
Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia explained to The Dallas Express, “It’s definitely hampered us, there’s no question about it.”
At the time of publication, the City still has apparently not been able to restore public-facing crime statistics, diminishing accountability and public safety.
Similarly, the cyberattack has allegedly prevented the City from fulfilling legal disclosure requirements in response to open record requests, as covered by The Dallas Express.
The public library was also an apparent victim of the ransomware, prompting the institution to revert to old ways of doing things.
Librarians were “checking out books, DVDs and other materials by hand, and returned materials were stacking up, unable to be checked in,” the City noted.
Despite finally getting the catalog systems running again, people’s accounts are reportedly likely to still be inaccurate as library staff updates the checkouts and check-ins.
Jo Giudice, the director of libraries, explained, “We are asking our customers to be patient with us and be assured that we will work through any issues on their accounts.”
“We never charge fines for overdue materials, and any charges for failure to return items will be resolved,” she added.
With the databases restored, work can resume on processing the returned books and placing them back on the shelves in the proper places. The task, however, will be a tall order.
Giudice asked for public assistance with the work, saying, “We are also looking for community volunteers to help us reshelve the thousands of items we’ve been unable to process until now.”
While progress is seemingly being made, some library programs are reportedly still hampered due to the ransomware attack, and the work on public computer access at library branches is ongoing.
