Cyberattack on TRF-3 Disrupts Court Operations

An unidentified cybercriminal has attacked TRF-3. The TRF-3 is the Federal Regional Court of the 3rd Region in Brazil. It covers the Brazilian state, Mato Grosso do Sul, and Sao Paulo and is responsible for appeal processes against trial court decisions, writs of security, Habeas corpus, Habeas data against acts by federal judges, motions to set aside judgments, criminal revisions, and conflicts of jurisdiction.

The court first identified the attack on March 30th, 2022, reporting that it had suspended its services. Given the system failures, Marisa Santos, president of the Federal Court of Justice of the 3rd Region, suspended public service from 4 pm on the day of the attack and throughout the following day. She also authorized on-premises staff to work from home where possible.

Response to the Attack

"The steps taken by the Information Technology Secretariat made it possible to identify the type of attack suffered and define the strategy to be followed in the investigation of the facts and in the progressive restoration of the court's technological infrastructure", explains the TRF-3 on its website.

TRF-3 reported that the attacker did not demand a ransom and that they were able to secure the impacted files. Cybercriminals prevented the use of some court equipment and "part of its visualization environment." The incident is being investigated by the police, but it is unclear who the attacker was.