Apex residents face utility bills up to $1,000 after ransomware attack, town brings in outside firm

Apex residents reached out to WRAL News after a ransomware attack left many paying outrageously high utility bills. One person told WRAL News their bill was $1,000.

In July, a hack knocked the town network offline. Residents were unable to pay bills or apply for permits electronically while the town's network was down.

The incident was confirmed as a ransomware act, the town said in an update on its website.

"This crisis, caused by a cybersecurity incident, has created instability in the billing system," Mayor Jacques Gilbert said in a statement Sunday on Instagram.

No leads in Apex ransomware attack

Councillor Terry Mahaffey said he's investigating the billing issues caused by this attack and is waiting to get more information from town officials.

"I have absolutely heard the concerns about the recent utility bills as we continue to recover from the cybersecurity incident," Mahaffey wrote in an email to residents. "I’m engaged and waiting to get more information from administration on several points."

Mahaffey said the most recent bill that residents received was for a two-month period.

"Any estimated payments during that period should be subtracted off that two-month total, yielding a final amount due," Mahaffey wrote.

The town posted an update to its website for bills dated Aug. 15:

• The town said some customers received an email on Aug. 26 that was auto-generated by its billing software.
• At that time, bills were not available to view in the online portal. The town said the issue has since been resolved.
• For customers with irrigation accounts, the bill contained an error in the irrigation rate, which was quickly resolved. All information contained in the online portal is accurate.

"I am very sorry for the trouble everyone is having," Mahaffey wrote. "I promise that everyone will be billed fairly and accurately. Any issues with the bills (missing credits, etc) will be worked through, and no one will be charged a late fee or be disconnected for lack of payment until we get through the backlog and resume business as usual."

Anyone who believes their usage numbers are inaccurate can call 919-362-8676.

"To those of you who have seen your bills double or more, I hear you," Mayor Gilbert said in a statement. "To the resident who came into Town Hall in tears because your account on automatic draft was depleted by an unexpected charge, leaving you unable to pay your bills – I see you, and I share your frustration. To those of you who waited on hold for answers, only to be disconnected, or who stood in line at Town Hall yo seek help – I hear you, and I saw you."

The mayor said he's committed to working toward a solution.

"There are areas that must be improved," he said. "I believe that one thing we must also do immediately is effective payment reconciliation, ensuring that any excess charges are addressed swiftly and fairly."

He did not provide a timeline of when this will happen.

WRAL News asked what the city is doing to strengthen its cybersecurity

"While we continue to investigate this incident, we are taking appropriate steps to further strengthen the Town of Apex's existing, significant safeguards," Mahaffey said.

This is not the first time a cyber attack like this has happened in North Carolina.

Town of Apex has hired a 3rd party firm to analyze the billing issues

The Town of Apex has announced that they have hired a third-party firm to analyze the billing issues.

In a statement, they said the following:

"For an additional level of review and transparency around utility billing, the town has hired BerryDunn, an independent third-party firm, to conduct a comprehensive analysis of recent billing data. The purpose of this review is to determine whether or not customers were overcharged during the summer billing cycles. BerryDunn is expected to deliver their findings and recommendations to the Town by late February or early March.This page will be updated regularly throughout the review process to keep customers informed and outline the next steps. In the meantime, the Town will continue issuing monthly utility bills based on current usage and payment data."

In 2020, the City of Durham and Durham County were hit by a malware attack.

In 2019, Orange County officials said a ransomware virus shut down the county's computer network.