Data Breach Compromises Parking Ticket Payment System In Ames

From The City of Ames:

09/25/2019 4:00 PM

Nearly 1,500 customers who used the City of Ames website to pay parking tickets online from July 30 to Sept. 12 are being notified of a data breach. This notice only affects parking ticket payments. No other City payment systems were compromised. Possible data released includes encrypted credit or debit card numbers, first names, last names, addresses and email addresses.

The City of Ames uses Click2Gov, a third party vendor, to process parking ticket payments. The City also maintains its own web server to communicate with Click2Gov. The breach occurred on the City’s web server. Because of this identified vulnerability, the City followed internal protocol and replaced the web server. In addition, the City is migrating to a web-based system that offers multiple layers of security. In November 2018, the parking ticket system was compromised after Click2Gov experienced an attack. The result affected 4,600 customers who paid Ames parking tickets, as well as several other Click2Gov clients. In this recent incident, Ames was one of several other Click2Gov customers across the country experiencing a compromise due to hacking activity.

“No one has reported suspicious activity to us, but we strongly encourage all customers receiving notice to be vigilant about monitoring credit and banking transactions,” said City of Ames Information Technology Manager Dorrance Smith. “Since we were made aware of the server compromise, we’ve taken steps on our end to make the system less vulnerable to cyber attacks.”

Any time electronic payments are used, it’s important to monitor credit card statements or banking information for any signs of unauthorized use.

“We know our customers trust the safety of our payment systems, and we are extremely concerned by this incident,” Smith said. “We remain vigilant about keeping information shared with the City safe, and we have taken steps to implement the most effective security measures available.”

This press release was produced by the City of Ames. The views expressed here are the author’s own.