WSDOT Admits Camera Malfunction Caused by Security Hack

The WSDOT made the best of a bad situation Tuesday but now admits the camera malfunction was caused by a "security incident."

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WSDOT Cameras Go Dark Tuesday, November 7, 2023

On Tuesday, the Washington State Department of Transportation cameras suddenly went down. Every camera the department uses to help guide travelers or warn them about slowdowns, accidents, or bad conditions suddenly stopped working. Rain was falling fairly heavy, making conditions on western Washington highways more dangerous than usual. WSDOT decided to make the best of a bad situation and draw some hilarious pictures in pen describing the conditions on the highways to help after the loss of the camera information. You can read more about that story by clicking here. The pictures were hilarious but the situation turned out not to be nearly as funny. Today WSDOT actually admitted the cause of the camera network failure, a security hack.

WSDOT Admits Hack Took Down Cameras

The Washington State Department of Transportation now admits that every camera on their network was affected, including: "travel maps, traffic cameras, ferry vessel watch, mountain pass reports, online freight permits, and other services." The department described the security breach on the official WSDOT Facebook page and said that they still are working on fully restoring both their app and website. There is a full investigation into the cause of the security breach but have already identified the cause. They say the hack was targeted to stop the flow of all traffic information on their network but think that no other systems were affected. The Washington State Department of Transportation also said "We are working to get everything restored as quickly as possible and in the meantime, we will continue to provide updates on our social media platforms."

WSDOT Answers Key Questions

Some residents decided to ask questions on the post asking, "Can we still call in for oversized load permits? Or is everyone dead in the water until it's fixed?" WSDOT replied, "Handwritten oversize and overweight permits are available for issue by our staff at the following locations until services have resumed: Please check the business hours and call the office prior to arrival." If anyone has questions about any of the systems affected by the hack, just contact your local office or any of the department's active official social media accounts.