City of Oakland says ransomware attack 'contained' as services slowly come back online

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Oakland city officials say systems are slowly coming back online after the ransomware attack that targeted the city's government networks, infrastructure and communication systems.

The ransomware attack that impacted the entire city of Oakland is still slowing down city workers.

"Forty-seven right now at the moment. City Hall wi-fi is not accessible, therefore a lot of individuals are not coming into the workplace," said Councilmember Janani Ramachandran.

Ramachandran says some departments have been hit harder than others.

RELATED: Ransomware attack on Oakland continues to disrupt city services

Oakland officials continue to fight an ongoing ransomware attack that has rendered much of the city services unusable.

"There is a disproportionate impact on police, permitting, fire and a couple of other departments, which is of course a deeply, deeply serious concern," she said.

City officials say city services are getting back online.

"Starting today, key roles - particularly finance, payroll - will have access to our internal financial systems, be able to process everyone's pay. This has been thankfully fairly uninterrupted," Ramachandran said.

We reached out to the mayor and interim city administrator to ask them exactly what city services were impacted, how much has been restored, and what's been done to safeguard the city's networks and infrastructure.

RELATED: Oakland ransomware attack: Here's a look at how other cities solved their cyberattacks

As Oakland is still dealing with a ransomware attack, officials with some of the other cities hit say it as a long and expensive process.

Today, in a written statement, the city says that the threat has been contained.

An investigation is still underway and the city is working with law enforcement to enhance the security of its systems.

The city of Oakland says IT has implemented creative solutions and temporary measures to continue to serve the community and quote:

"Thanks to these efforts, our employees continue to be paid on time, and we have been able to restore access to public computers... additionally, critical public safety services are restored."

RELATED: Expert explains how City of Oakland may have become victim of ransomware attack

How did the City of Oakland become a victim of a ransomware attack? Expert says a phishing email could be to blame.

Oakland police say 911 lines are working and that people can file crime reports online and in person.

"My vehicle was stolen," said Ravikash Nandan.

At Oakland Police Department, people should expect long waits and long lines.

"We got here about 45 minutes ago. And we haven't moved. There are about seven people in line," Nandan said.

The sign on the door of the police department warns visitors.

"So it says we're sorry, our computers are down. Functionality is very limited. Please be patient. We will do our best to assist you," Nandan said.

If you're on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live