The City of Urbana, Ohio, said a Nov. 23 cyberattack disrupted several municipal computer systems but left police, fire, public works, court and emergency response services operating as state and federal cybersecurity teams investigate.
In a statement submitted to the Urbana Daily Citizen, city officials said they discovered the attack Sunday and moved to contain it with local information technology staff and outside partners.
The city said state and federal officials were notified and that its IT teams, “supported by federal and state cyber security partners, are working around the clock to completely resolve the incident.” The statement did not identify which systems were affected, how the attackers gained access or how long the disruptions might last.
Officials said there is currently “no evidence that any sensitive information was leaked” and that resident information “has not been compromised,” while cautioning that a full investigation is still underway. The city did not say whether it is treating the incident as ransomware, data theft or another type of intrusion.
Despite the disruption, Urbana said essential services, including police, fire, public works, court operations and emergency response, “remain fully operational,” suggesting the attack is primarily affecting administrative and back-office systems rather than 911, patrol response or utility field work.
The attack comes days after a separate cybersecurity incident involving CodeRED, the emergency alert platform used by the Champaign Countywide Communications Center and other Ohio communities. Officials said a vendor breach affecting the CodeRED environment was contained but damaged the legacy platform enough that it will be replaced, and some cities have warned residents that contact data may have been removed from the system, though authorities have not said whether Urbana’s incident is related.
Ohio cities have been frequent targets of cyberattacks. Columbus spent much of the past year responding to a July 2024 ransomware attack that forced officials to disconnect systems, disrupted services and led to mass data-exposure notices, prompting Ohio to require local governments, including cities, counties and school districts, to adopt formal cybersecurity programs.
Urbana now joins a growing list of Ohio governments hit in 2025, including Cleveland Municipal Court, Lorain County courts, Liberty Township, Middletown and West Chester Township, where cyber incidents have disrupted operations, as well as Piqua, Mentor and, most recently, Trumbull County, which have reported intrusions or vendor-related breaches affecting email, records access or other city systems.
Urbana is a city of about 11,000 residents and the seat of Champaign County in western Ohio. City officials said they will provide further updates on the cyberattack as more information becomes available and as system restoration progresses.
