Phone lines down in multiple courts across California after ransomware attack

Several courts across California have lost their phone lines after a ransomware attack targeting the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. The court hosts phone servers for courts in Shasta, Inyo, San Luis Obispo, Stanislaus and Colusa counties. The Shasta County courthouse has been operating without phones, fax or text reminders due to the attack, which took place Friday. Webpages for the other courts all showed notifications that their phone systems were down. Ransomware attacks essentially hold a target computer or computer system hostage by encrypting its files and demanding payment for access to be restored.