Nevada Confirms Data Theft After Statewide Cyberattack

Malicious actors targeted Nevada’s networks and services in a recent ransomware-based cyberattack. Local authorities confirmed that the incident disrupted websites, phone lines, and forced state offices to close. An ongoing investigation has revealed that some data was exfiltrated from the state’s network.

The office of Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo shared a post on the social media platform X on Monday, informing the public about the disruption.

“On early Sunday morning, the State of Nevada identified a network security incident and immediately engaged in 24/7 recovery efforts,” states the memo. “As the State continues its recovery efforts, the network security incident continues to impact the availability of certain state technology systems on the state network. Some state websites or phone lines may be slow or briefly unavailable during recovery.”

State offices were shut down earlier this week, and employees were placed on administrative leave as multiple buildings were closed. Systems began gradually coming back online on Tuesday. Initially, authorities reported no evidence of sensitive data being compromised, but a later update confirmed that private information had been stolen.

According to CBS News, Nevada officials shared a new update on Wednesday. ​​Tim Galluzi, the state’s Chief Information Officer, told reporters that investigators had found clear evidence of exfiltrated data.

"I must disclose that our ongoing forensic investigation has found evidence that indicates some data has been exfiltrated, or moved outside the state network, by the malicious actors," said Galluzi to reporters. “At this stage, we cannot yet identify or classify the specific nature of this data."

Galluzi also reminded citizens that the outages were still disrupting state agency operations. He acknowledged the demand for the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) services but explained that officials were prioritizing systems tied to public safety and health. Emergency services such as 911 have remained consistently available.

Local authorities and the FBI are still investigating and said they will share more updates soon.

This incident follows a similar attack just days earlier in the city of St. Paul, Minnesota, where hackers disrupted city services and online systems.