On Monday, Brennon Warren, community relations officer for the Midland Police Department, told the Daily News that the cyberattack was reported to police on Thursday. The investigation is still in the early stages.”
MiTCON serves 85 nonprofit organizations and small businesses with 800 computers in the Midland region. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Midland Business Alliance.
Warren said the perpetrator of the ransomware attack did not ask for a specific amount of money. Once the MiTCON network is fully operational again, the organization will release the relevant data that investigators need to investigate the ransomware.
The investigation will take a long time, Warren said.
“It’s going to be a very complex situation,” he said. “We only have so many resources. The scale of this (case) is pretty big.”
Warren said this is the first ransomware case reported to the Midland Police Department since at least early 2022.
Investigators don’t know what areas the hackers are in and likely “won’t know for quite some time.”
Warren said if charges are filed in this case, it will be for fraud and computer hacking/invasion and a felony. Tony Stamas, president and CEO of the Midland Business Alliance, told the Daily News he expected phone and Internet service to be restored to all MiTCON partners by Monday evening. By 2 p.m. Monday, service had been restored for most partners.
“Restoring the email server will take more time to ensure it is safe to use,” Stamas added. “Those using Office 365 now have access to their email.” “MiTCON, an IT services provider that primarily serves nonprofit organizations in the Great Lakes Bay Region and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Midland Business Alliance, was the victim of a ransomware attack on Oct. 20. This affected customers’ internet and email services, as well as their phone lines. The MiTCON team quickly contained the threat and is working diligently to restore services to its customers.