Cobb County officials in Marietta, Georgia, remain tight-lipped about a potential cybersecurity incident that forced multiple servers offline starting Friday, March 21, 2025, after detecting suspicious system activity.
The county initially framed the disruption as routine maintenance through their website and social media channels, including a webpage that was later removed. However, a county spokesperson subsequently admitted the server activity appeared suspicious and could be linked to a possible hacking attempt.
While core services like phone systems and payment processing have been restored, several online platforms continue experiencing outages. Affected services include court filing systems, senior services registration, and box office ticketing operations.
The county's careful messaging, referring to the incident as "unscheduled maintenance" rather than a potential cyber threat, stands in contrast to how other Georgia jurisdictions have handled similar situations. Both Marietta City Schools in 2024 and Fulton County in 2023 openly acknowledged falling victim to ransomware attacks.
This reserved communication approach has sparked questions about transparency, especially as residents face ongoing service disruptions without a clear timeline for complete restoration. While county representatives maintain no data breach has been confirmed, the ambiguous messaging about the root cause could potentially erode public confidence during the recovery process.
The incident highlights growing cybersecurity challenges faced by local governments and their varying approaches to crisis communication when dealing with potential digital threats.