City officials in Midway, Florida, say ransomware hit the police department’s SmartCOP records system, disrupting access to some public records requests and prompting warnings about suspicious emails as investigators review the breach.
Midway officials confirmed the city was the victim of a “cybersecurity incident” involving SmartCOP, a cloud-based system the police department uses to store documents and public records, according to WTXL.
Residents have reported difficulty obtaining requested public records, the station reported, and the issue surfaced publicly after a longtime resident raised concerns at a city meeting.
David Gaines, identified by WTXL as a Midway resident, said at the meeting that “right now there are no records” as a result of what he described as “the hacking or whatever has happened within the system.”
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Officials told residents ransomware was involved and warned that attackers could send emails demanding payment and claiming they have access to records. City leaders urged residents not to click suspicious links or respond to unknown messages.
The Gadsden County Sheriff’s Office confirmed an investigation is ongoing but declined further comment, WTXL reported. The station said it also contacted Gretna Police and SmartCOP but had not received a response.
SmartCOP says it provides public-safety software used by law enforcement and other public agencies and is headquartered in Pensacola, Florida.
Florida local governments have faced similar cyber disruptions: the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office said an August 2024 ransomware attack limited access to some records, and North Miami’s August 2024 incident closed City Hall for nearly a week and disrupted services including online utility payments and some police systems, though officials said 911 remained operational.
Midway is a small city in Gadsden County in the Tallahassee metropolitan area, with a population of about 3,537 as of the 2020 census.
City officials and investigators have not publicly detailed what data, if any, was accessed or removed, or when normal access to records will be fully restored.
