Officials in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, said a weekend network outage at county government offices stemmed from a “cybersecurity incident” that forced some systems offline while investigators assess potential damage.
County officials said in a written statement that after discovering the incident, they disconnected affected systems “out of an abundance of caution” as part of their incident response protocols to protect the network and its data.
The outage did not affect public safety operations or emergency services, according to the statement shared with WMUR. Officials said they have implemented additional security measures and heightened monitoring across the network while the investigation continues.
The county said it is working with third-party cybersecurity experts and is in contact with federal and county law enforcement to determine the nature and scope of the incident. The investigation is described as “early and ongoing,” and officials did not specify what type of attack occurred or whether any county data was accessed.
County leaders also did not detail which offices or online services were affected, or how long some systems may remain offline. Residents with routine business at county offices could face delays as systems are restored, but no timeline for full recovery has been announced.
Hillsborough County’s Computer Information Systems Department manages network design and administration, internet and email services, VoIP telephones, financial software, and time-and-attendance systems for about 800 employees across more than eight county offices from Manchester to Nashua. The department operates roughly 350 computers and 20 servers with a staff of four full-time employees.
The Hillsborough County incident follows a series of cyber disruptions across New Hampshire in 2025. Strafford County courts in Dover were knocked offline by a cyberattack in March, halting trials and hearings. That same month, the Pelham School District shut down its network for two weeks after a separate attack, and Hudson School District reported a similar network outage in June.
In July, Coös County Family Health Services in Berlin suffered a cyberattack that crippled phones and computers, while Nashua’s St. Joseph Hospital—part of Covenant Health—was among facilities affected by a regional healthcare breach in May. Together, the incidents highlight a growing trend of persistent threats targeting public institutions across the state.
Officials said they will provide further updates as the investigation progresses and emphasized that their priority is “safeguarding the county’s systems, maintaining public safety, and ensuring continuity of services for our residents.”
