Town of Sunset Beach

Profile narrative

The Town of Sunset Beach is a municipal government located in Sunset Beach, North Carolina, United States. As a town, it provides local government services to residents and businesses within its jurisdiction. The town operates under the authority of the State of North Carolina and is administered by elected officials. Its headquarters are situated within the town limits, serving as the central administrative office. The organisation serves a community known as Sunset Beach, a coastal locality in the southeastern part of the state. The available sources do not provide detailed statistics on the town’s population or budget.

In June 2021 the town experienced a ransomware attack that persisted for more than six weeks. The intrusion was made possible through the exploitation of an unused network port. Town officials confirmed that they did not engage with the attackers and did not disclose any ransom demands. Daily backup procedures were in place, allowing the recovery of approximately ninety‑nine percent of documents. Files stored locally on individual desktops were not covered by the backups and had to be recreated after the incident. Despite the attack, municipal operations continued without major disruption, requiring only minor document restoration efforts. Following the event, the town’s information technology staff deployed new hardware and software to strengthen defenses against unauthorized access. The response highlighted the value of regular backups and proactive network hardening for local government entities. Authorities noted that the incident reflects broader trends of increased ransomware targeting of critical infrastructure and municipal organisations. No external law‑enforcement agencies were reported to have been involved in the town’s response to the attack.

Incidents

1 incident linked to this organisation.