California officials say largest trial court in US victim of ransomware attack

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A ransomware attack has shut down the computer system of the largest trial court in the country, officials with the Superior Court of Los Angeles County said.

The cybersecurity attack began early Friday and is not believed to be related to the faulty CrowdStrike software update that has disrupted airlines, hospitals and governments around the world, officials said in a statement Friday.

The court disabled its computer network systems upon discovery of the attack, and it will remain down through at least the weekend. A preliminary investigation shows no evidence that users’ data was compromised, according to the statement.

The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is the largest unified superior court in the United States, serving the county’s 10 million residents over 36 courthouses. Nearly 1.2 million cases were filed and 2,200 jury trials were conducted in 2022.