The additional protection against cyber attacks for the city of Potsdam causes costs “in the lower single-digit million range” – per year. Mayor Mike Schubert (SPD) said that on Wednesday evening before the city councilors in the main committee. The left parliamentary group leader Hans-Jürgen Scharfenberg had asked. He did not provide any further information – including the costs currently incurred in the course of the attack and the review of the systems at the turn of the year.
Among other things, it is about permanent monitoring of the systems, according to Schubert. Furthermore, for example, new registration procedures for users have been established. One hopes to be able to work with other municipalities on security – for example via the Zweckverband Digitale Kommunen Brandenburg. The SPD city councilor Nico Marquardt criticized that such security costs are actually the responsibility of the federal government.
As reported, Potsdam expects budget deficits in the millions for the next few years, which the city administration wants to pay off from reserves – and with a savings program that has not yet been specified in detail. It has already been announced that free culture should not receive any higher subsidies, despite inflation and rising costs.
On December 29, 2022, the city learned of the possible attack
As reported, the city administration cut the Internet lines of its systems after warnings from security authorities of an imminent cyber attack on December 29, and the municipal companies followed suit the day after as a precaution. System checks afterwards have not revealed any damage or data leaks so far. Nevertheless, Schubert made it clear that, given the warning from the State Criminal Police Office, switching off was the only option. The current events cannot be compared with the cyber attack of 2020, he said. At that time, the town hall was only able to act to a limited extent for months.
Now, after three weeks, it is already being ramped up again step by step. E-mails in the town hall are already possible again and from next Monday other areas will also go online. But you also have to certify to partners like Bundesdruckerei that Potsdam’s return to the network is safe. The pent-up demand that has arisen, for example in the citizen service, cannot yet be classified, said Schubert.
Are costs reimbursed because the citizen service is not working?
When asked by PNN, city hall spokeswoman Juliane Güldner specified on Thursday that further citizen services would be possible again next week. “We are working hard to ensure that this also includes the registration and re-registration of the vehicles.” In the past few days there had been increasing expressions of displeasure from Potsdam residents on social networks such as Facebook, who were pushing for an end to the restrictions. It was said that certain contracts could not be changed without possible re-registrations, which caused costs.
The city spokeswoman said that she could “currently not give a general answer” to reimbursements in such cases. It was very annoying that, for example, vehicles could not be registered or re-registered, she admitted: “But we ask for your understanding that we are not the potential attackers on our systems and cause the damage, we want the data of the citizens and protect citizens from unauthorized access.” In the committee, Schubert named the passport and registration system, car services and housing benefit as priorities for the restoration.
For the housing benefit office, however, the Ministry for Infrastructure made up to ten jobs available to the employees to process the applications, the city said. The registry office has also succeeded in collaborating with surrounding municipalities for the certification of births and deaths. “For example, the cities of Falkensee, Werder (Havel), Rangsdorf and the municipality of Schwielowsee support us by providing jobs for our female colleagues,” says the town hall. (with dpa)
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