The Los AngelesCounty health department identified traces of ransomware on five of its computers Wednesday, but maintains operations have not been impacted by the malicious software, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The health department reported the attack to the county's chief information office and the Los Angeles district attorney, but has no plans to pay the ransom, according to the Times. A spokesperson said it was the first cyberattack of its kind to hit the health department.
Clifford Neuman, director of the Los Angeles-based University of Southern California's Center for Computer Systems Security, told the Times the software was likely a different variant from the kind that led Los Angeles-based HollywoodPresbyterianMedicalCenter to pay a $17,000 ransom earlier this month to free up its medical record systems. The health department's reliable security designed to prevent the ransomware from spreading further may have prevented the attack from doing more damage.