A coordinated cyberattack has crippled key information systems in the City of St. Paul, prompting local, state, and federal authorities — including the Minnesota National Guard — to launch a full-scale response.
Governor Tim Walz announced Tuesday that the National Guard’s cyber unit was activated to support recovery efforts after city officials confirmed that the “magnitude and complexity” of the attack exceeded their internal capabilities.
“This wasn’t a glitch or technical error,” said Mayor Melvin Carter during a press conference. “This was a deliberate, criminal cyberattack targeting the core of our city’s infrastructure.”
Emergency Declared, FBI Leading Federal Investigation
State of emergency declared: St. Paul has activated its emergency operations center and retained two national cybersecurity firms.
FBI, DHS, and other federal agencies are assisting in the investigation.
The city shut down all IT systems Monday as a containment measure, affecting internal operations and public-facing services.
“We are the victims of a serious crime,” said Jaime Wascalus, director of the Office of Technology and Communications.
Widespread Disruptions
The cyberattack has caused city-wide disruptions:
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Public Wi-Fi outages in government buildings
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Library systems offline, forcing staff to check out books manually
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Email and internal communications suspended
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City services delayed or unavailable
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911 services remain operational, though staff are managing “back-end challenges”
Some city employees have been told to take time off, not by choice, but due to the collapse of essential systems.
Personal Information Exposure Still Unknown
City officials have not confirmed whether personal or financial information was compromised. Experts are urging residents and city-connected employees to:
“If you use the same password for the City of St. Paul login portal and other accounts, change it immediately,” warned Brian Halbach, cybersecurity expert and president of Good Guy Hackers LLC.
Union Sounds the Alarm
AFSCME Council 5, the union representing city employees, is demanding answers and protection for workers.
“This is not the employee’s fault,” said Executive Director Bart Andersen. “They shouldn’t be told to take vacation because of a cyberattack.”
Andersen urged members to verify the security of their bank accounts and to watch for identity theft or fraud.
Uncertainty Lingers
St. Paul residents remain frustrated and in the dark about how long the outages will last and what data — if any — was stolen.
“It’s a little concerning we’re having an attack like that,” said Travis Edwards, a library patron who couldn’t check out books without his card due to the system crash.
