California city declares emergency after cyberattack

Suisun City, a Northern California municipality, has declared a state of emergency following a cyberattack that disrupted critical municipal computer systems. The attack, which occurred on Friday, August 7 at around 5:45 am, disabled 911 routing, police and fire dispatch, and several other government services. Emergency calls were still answered, with dispatch operations being transferred to Solano County.

The city's entire IT network was shut down to contain the intrusion and preserve digital evidence for federal investigators. The Suisun City Council approved the emergency declaration during a special meeting on Saturday, August 8. The emergency declaration grants the municipality greater flexibility to obtain assistance and recover costs from the incident.

While critical public safety operations continued, several departments, including planning, building, housing, water, finance, human resources, public works, and the city manager's office, were unable to provide normal services. Online municipal services and some internal operations were also unavailable. The police department lobby offered limited services.

The FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services are assisting Suisun City with the investigation and restoration efforts. Private cybersecurity specialists have also been brought in to examine the compromised network. Suisun City, with roughly 30,000 residents, is among a growing number of municipalities dealing with disruptive cyber incidents.

Smaller local governments are particularly attractive targets due to their networks containing sensitive financial information, employee records, permitting systems, and public-safety applications, often with fewer cybersecurity resources than larger government agencies or major companies. The incident highlights the importance of maintaining alternative communications arrangements during an IT failure.