PORT TOWNSEND — The Jefferson County Public Utility District website was hacked but there is no indication that any consumer or staff information was accessed, officials said.
The strange post that appeared on the PUD’s website was nothing to worry about, officials were told Monday, said Jim Parker, office manager for the Public Utility District.
The post that appeared on the PUD’s website was dated Feb. 3 and simply read “hacked by NG689Skw.”
“It’s the digital version of graffiti,’” Parker said in an email. “Some individual managed to change the title of the top posts on numerous WordPress sites around the web.”
The PUD’s website is hosted off-site and so it has no connection to the public utility’s network or data.
“There’s been no issue with customer or staff information,” Parker said.
A Google search of the hack will show that it has popped up on a variety of WordPress sites, from personal blogs to websites for a museum in England and mortgage brokers in Canada.
Parker said he was alerted to the post Monday morning and it was quickly changed back to the PUD’s most recent post on scam calls to local businesses which was posted Friday.
Parker said the PUD creates its website using WordPress but it is hosted by the third party Onepath.com, the same company that hosts Clallam County PUD’s website.
According to Parker, the PUD is following up with its hosting provider for more information about the hack.
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Jefferson County Editor/Reporter Cydney McFarland can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 55052, or at cmcfarland@peninsuladailynews.com.
