Ransomware closed all 36 Los Angeles County Superior Court courthouses

The Superior Court of Los Angeles County, the largest unified trial court in the United States, detected ransomware on its network early on Friday, July 19, 2024. Presiding Judge Samantha Jessner said the court had to shut down nearly all network systems in order to contain the damage.

The shutdown took out the public court website, the MyJuryDuty portal, the internal case management system, electronic filing, call centers and the telephone system, along with any internet-connected device. Attorneys facing Friday deadlines had to file documents in person, and some matters could not be heard. All 36 courthouses were closed on Monday, July 22, while court staff, law enforcement, vendors and outside consultants worked on recovery. The Judicial Council of California granted a one-day extension for filing deadlines, trial dates and defendant arraignments.

Court officials said a preliminary investigation found no evidence that court users' data had been compromised, and credited recent enhancements to the court's cybersecurity infrastructure with detecting the intrusion quickly. Several agencies took part in the response, including the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services.

The court said it would resume operations on Tuesday, July 23, 2024, with reduced functionality and the likelihood of delays for court users. Officials said the attack was unrelated to the CrowdStrike software failure that disrupted systems worldwide at the same time, and declined further comment while the investigation continued.