Palau officials says no operational impact following latest cyberattack

Palau officials are looking into another cyberattack just months after recovering from a previous attack.

At 11 a.m. July 2, it was discovered that a Bureau of Customs and Border Protection database server was compromised, according to a press release. Jay Anson, Chief Information Security Officer, said the data was encrypted with ransomware.

Aerial view of Palau. Photo courtesy Belau Submarine Cable Corporation

The Ministry of Finance Information Systems Service and Support team is working with outside cybersecurity firm and law enforcement to determine the specifics of the incident.

Officials emphasized that there was no impact to, or interruptions of, operations at the Palau International Airport.

Initial investigations located a ransom note. No government officials have been contacted to negotiate a ransom.

“We will provide more information when we can,” Anson wrote in the release.

Palau’s financial management system was hacked in March. Officials said they had to process payroll manually for one pay period but were able to resume regular operations within a couple of weeks.

Palau and the U.S. agree on hospital, pension aid and third-country nationals in Palau

On Dec. 24, Palau and the United States signed two memorandums of understanding that will see Washington expand support for Palau’s health, security, pensions and education infrastructure, and an agreement for Palau to accept up to 75 third country nationals who entered the U.S. without authorization but have no known criminal history.

Palau officials says no operational impact following latest cyberattack