Cybersecurity

Overview
The City of Columbus Department of Technology learned that a foreign cyber threat actor attempted to disrupt the city’s IT infrastructure. The city’s Department of Technology quickly identified the threat, which included severing internet connectivity. Despite the team's round-the-clock efforts, in partnership with federal authorities and cybersecurity experts, to prevent the exposure of personally identifiable information, the city has now confirmed that some data was accessed and posted on the dark web by cybercriminals. 

Sign Up: Division of Fire Protected Health Information (PHI) 

Helpful Tips
You are also encouraged to be cautious of potential scams and identity theft. Ways you can protect yourself include: 

• Do not give out your personal information unsolicited over the phone, email or by text. 
• Delete texts from numbers you don’t recognize.
• Do not reply to emails that ask you for money and do not click on links in emails you don’t recognize.
• Use different passwords for your different personal accounts.
• Monitor your bank and credit card statements for unauthorized use, and if you see anything, notify law enforcement and the credit bureaus.
• Obtain a free copy of your credit report by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com, or calling 1-877-322-8228. 

As a precautionary measure, you can freeze your credit with all three bureaus: Equifax (1-800-349-9960), Experian (888-397-3742) and TransUnion (888-909-8872).