AMU Emergency Management Original Public Safety

EDM Wednesday Briefing: Major Hack Hits UKG’s Kronos

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Kronos hack Arsenault

Emergency and disaster management briefing for December 15, 2021: The Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma has gone quiet; Kronos suffered a major ransomware attack affecting its payroll systems; pepperoni produced by Smithfield is being recalled due to contamination by Bacillus cereus; an H-E-B in San Antonio was evacuated for a bomb scare; a fire broke out at a SMUD substation in Sacramento; rainfall across the CZU August Lightning Complex burn scar threatens area residents; Greek officials shut down the entire metro system in Athens due to bomb threats; and crews in Santa Cruz continue work to reopen roadways destroyed or blocked by mud and debris slides.

1. Lava stopped flowing on Tuesday and seismic activity has not been recorded since late Monday at the Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma in the Canary Islands. Volcanologists noted that it might just be a lull in activity, which has happened in the past, or the eruption could finally be over. The volcano first began erupting on September 19, making it the longest eruption on record.

2. Kronos, a work management and payroll processing program, was hit with a major ransomware attack. Parent company UKG reportedly stated that it could be weeks before Kronos is operational again due to the hack. According to reports, the hack affected the Kronos private cloud and may have compromised clients’ employee information, including names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and employee IDs.

3. Smithfield Packaged Meats Corporation has issued a recall for approximately 10,990 pounds of ready-to-eat pepperoni. The product being recalled, Margherita Pepperoni, is potentially contaminated with Bacillus cereus, a microorganism that produces vomiting and diarrhea. The eight-ounce products, covered with plastic shrink wrap, were produced on June 17, 2021 and were shipped to retail establishments nationwide.

4. A bomb threat prompted the evacuation of a grocery store on the Southeast side of San Antonio Monday night. An H-E-B on New Braunfels Avenue received a call from an individual that said a bomb had been placed inside the store. When law enforcement arrived on the scene, the store had already been evacuated, and after a thorough search, it was determined there was no threat.

5. A fire broke out at a Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) substation on Tuesday morning, cutting power to area residents and businesses. The utility was forced to de-energize the other two networks to ensure public safety, cutting power to a majority of the downtown area. According to SMUD, three networks serve the downtown Sacramento area, and one of the networks suffered significant damage from the fire, extending the outage for anyone connected to that network.

6. An atmospheric river dumped copious amounts of rain across the CZU August Lightning Complex wildfire burn scar in the Santa Cruz, California, area. Due to the potential for mud and debris slides, the heavy rain threatens residents who live below the burn scar. Officials issued evacuation warnings for multiple areas and neighborhoods, but some residents are allegedly choosing to stay at home rather than evacuate.

7. Officials in Greece shut down the entire metro system in Athens on Tuesday afternoon after receiving bomb threats. The bomb threats affected two metro stations, Monastiraki and Syntagma, the latter of which houses the system’s control center. Police had to evacuate the Metro Operation Control Centre since it was part of the affected station, forcing the shutdown of the entire system until an all-clear was given by police and the lines were reopened for service.

8. Crews continue work to reopen roads across the Santa Cruz area in California after torrential rainfall over the weekend and into Monday. An atmospheric river slammed the region, toppling trees and sending boulders, debris, and downed power lines sliding down the mountains. Nearly three-quarters of Lodge Road was destroyed and sent downhill in a debris slide, while other roads were blocked by trees, boulders, and downed power lines.

Kimberly Arsenault serves as an intern at the Cleveland/Bradley County Emergency Management Agency where she works on plan revisions and special projects. Previously, Kimberly spent 15 years in commercial and business aviation. Her positions included station manager at the former Midwest Express Airlines, as well as corporate flight attendant, inflight manager, and charter flight coordinator. Kimberly currently holds a master's degree in emergency and disaster management from American Public University.

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