COLUMBIA, S.C. — More than a week after city staff found a breach in Columbia’s computer network, several of the city’s online tools were still offline on Wednesday, Oct. 28, though police, fire, 911 and water service have kept running.
The city’s GIS map showed only an unavailable notice Wednesday morning, and the planning and development website was down, pointing visitors to staff phone numbers and email addresses instead. MyColaSC, the app residents use to file service requests, is also affected, along with Parks and Recreation reservations and online Animal Services tools.
Until MyColaSC is back, residents can report potholes, downed trees, broken streetlights, park equipment problems and similar issues by calling (803) 545-3300. Emergencies should still go to 911.
The breach was discovered on Oct. 20, and the city’s IT department brought in the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. City officials later confirmed it was a ransomware attack and said the incident involved sensitive data inside the network. SLED and outside cybersecurity specialists are working to contain it and determine what information may have been accessed.
The city says the payment center, including online payments, still works, and departments hit by the outage are using workaround processes. A directory of department contacts is posted at ColumbiaSC.gov/connect-with-columbia.
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