Attempted NOIRLab cyberattack disrupts Hawai’i observatory

Hawai'i's Gemini North observatory had its operations disrupted following an attempted cyberattack targeted at the systems of the National Science Foundations National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, or NOIRLab, according to The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future. "Quick reactions by the NOIRLab cyber security team and observing teams prevented damage to the observatory. Out of an abundance of caution we have decided to isolate the Gemini Observatory computer systems by shutting them down," said NOIRLab, which added that while the website and proposal tools of Gemini have been taken down, its own website is still online. Other NOIRLab centers have not been impacted by the incident, which has not been specified by the lab. Such a cyberattack comes after the American Meteorological Society was targeted by a Cactus ransomware attack in April, as well as the disruption of Chile's Atacama Large Millimeter Array observatory, which is among the largest worldwide, following a cyberattack last October.