The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's computer system remains down after an outage on New Year's Day. Authorities are not yet clear what caused the crash. and did not say when the system would be available again.
“This is our own little Y2K,” Deputy Sheriff told the LA Times– This accident happened just a few hours before midnight on Tuesday. This resulted in an issue with the department's ability to handle calls related to the county's New Year's celebration. LASO said it appears the glitch occurred due to the system. “Personnel were not allowed to log in during the New Year period, making CAD unavailable.”
The anonymous deputy quoted by the Times also went into further detail about the problems the department encountered as a result of the accident: “Call recipients are now required to write down all information for each call. The dispatcher must then make all sounds. Details and scouts must take note of it all,” they said. “They have no ability to run people or plate. They can't pull report numbers and give them to people. So they had to call the dispatch unit.”
A computer-aided dispatch system (or CAD) is a digital communications network used by police to answer 911 calls and respond to emergencies. When those systems fail (Sometimes due to network errors and sometimes due to cyberattacks.) The system will force police to manage police work in the same way they handled it in the 1990s. Police reports are filled with pencil and paper and The 911 call was flooded with radios. LA County and the City of Los Angeles have been the targets of multiple cyberattacks. This includes debilitating attacks. Ransomware attack That happened at the county Superior Court last summer.
It is not yet clear when the system will come back online. “The department is collaborating closely with our LA County partners at the Department of Internal Services to find both temporary and long-term solutions to this technical issue,” the LASD statement said. The sheriff stressed the urgent need for action. Improving and upgrading our internal systems In mid-2023, the Ministry issued a formal request for proposals to receive a new modern centralized CAD system. This will greatly enhance our capabilities,” the statement continued.
Gizmodo has reached out to LASD for additional information and will update this story when we hear back.