Chelan County Systems to Remain Offline Through Next Week

Chelan County's computer systems are expected to remain offline until at least the end of next week following a malware attack.

County Extends System Restoration Timeline

READ MORE: Computer Networks at Chelan County Targeted by Malware Attack

Chelan County Commissioner Kevin Overbay provided the update this week.

"We don't have a full timeline for our restoration efforts," Overbay said. "We are making progress every day."

A malware attack forced the county's IT department to shut down its network on the morning of May 24. The county's phone, email, and computer systems remain down.

Emergency Declaration Speeds Recovery Efforts

Overbay said the county hired a third-party security firm to determine the extent of the attack. Overbay said the Board of County Commissioners declared a state of emergency, allowing the county to approve emergency service contracts without a competitive bidding process.

Federal Authorities Investigating Attack

The attack has been reported to federal law enforcement.

What Residents Can Expect During Recovery

Even if the county systems are back up and running, Overbay said it will take a while for operations to return to normal.

"If folks try to email us, they will not get a bounce-back notice; it's going into a queue right now, so once the system is up and operational, we're going to get flooded with emails," Overbay said.

All five county websites remain offline, including the county's main website, Ohme Gardens, Chelan County Fair, the County Expo Center and Wenatchee River County Park.

Phone systems also remain down.

Services Still Available During Outage

Most in-person county services remain available. However, the Sheriff's Office front counter remains closed.

The County is providing updates to its court system operations, county services, and IT outage updates on its social media accounts.