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'Goner' virus hits Dunedin City Hall
By LEON M. TUCKER, Times Staff Writer DUNEDIN -- As many as 8,000 e-mails sent to and from City Hall were erased when a virus swept through Dunedin's main server in December. City officials say some of the messages, considered public records under Florida's Sunshine Law, contained information dealing with city business. City Manager John Lawrence said the loss was not intentional. "I don't know much about viruses," Lawrence said. "But that one really wiped us out." The city's computer specialist said he discovered a worm virus named the 'Goner' had infected Dunedin's server, wiping out 11 months' worth of messages. In December, four Israeli teenagers admitted creating and spreading the computer virus by e-mail to attack hundreds of users around the world. The Internet worm first spread to computers in Europe. American antivirus companies later reported more than 400 cases of Goner attacks worldwide -- including at Dunedin City Hall. "I'm really not sure what happened," said Mal Mallory, the city's information services manager. "We have virus protection software; but this one got into it, and it wiped out our mail server." Mallory said the new e-mail system the city purchased 11 months before the attack did not have a $400 software program installed to ward off viruses such as the Goner. "I don't know why we didn't know," Mallory said. "We have used this system to recover other files before. We just didn't know and never really thought there might be an extra piece we needed." Mallory said the program has been purchased and is in the process of being installed. According to the Florida Bureau of Archives and Records Management, state law requires public agencies to back up electronic records on a regular basis to safeguard against the loss of information due to equipment malfunctions or human error. Duplicate copies of long-term or permanent records also are supposed to be maintained in storage areas. "The intentional disposition of records without meeting our requirements would be considered a misdemeanor," said Lynn Rawls, operations and management consultant for the Bureau of Archives and Records. "However, the loss of files due to a mechanical failure or a virus, I can't say. That would have to be referred to the Office of the State Attorney." Assistant Pinellas State Attorney Marie King said she wasn't aware of the Dunedin case and declined to comment. Lawrence said the virus was nothing more than an unfortunate event that, with the right software, won't happen again. "This is a virus that just wiped them out," he said. "If the implications is we somehow engineered a virus to wipe out our e-mail, (that) is outrageous." The mayor's and most commissioners' e-mails were not affected by the virus because many of them use a private e-mail service, which Lawrence said was issued to them before the new system was installed. The service, called Hotmail is a free e-mail services that does not rely on the city's server for receipt and delivery of messages. "It concerns me; but on the other hand, I get very few e-mails," Mayor Tom Anderson said of the virus attack. "I'm a firm believer in the Sunshine Law; and if there is any information in the city, it is available to anyone in the city."
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From the Times North Pinellas desks |
