On October 20, 2025, Mitchell County detected ransomware on its computer network. As soon as it learned this, the County began working to investigate and determine the scope of the incident. The County also reported this incident to federal law enforcement and worked with nationally recognized third-party cybersecurity and data forensics consultants, the North Carolina Joint Cybersecurity Task Force and other state resources to assist it. As part of the ongoing investigation, the County determined that there was unauthorized access to the County network between October 16, 2025 and October 20, 2025. During that time, the cyber criminals took certain County data from its network, which included protected health information. The affected information relates to individuals who received or are receiving services from the County Department of Social Services.
The investigation is ongoing, and the County is working to conduct a thorough review of the contents of the data to establish what information may have been involved, who may have been affected, and where those people reside so that we can provide written notice. Upon completing its review, the County will provide required written notice to individuals and will offer complimentary credit monitoring services where appropriate.
Today, the County is providing notice on its website to individuals whose information may have been impacted in the recent cyber incident. The notice is now posted at https://www.mitchellcountync.gov/.
The County continues to closely monitor its systems, data, and network access. Additionally, the County is evaluating and making changes to strengthen its network against any future incidents. As a precautionary measure, the County encourages potentially impacted individuals to take appropriate steps to protect their protected health information by regularly reviewing account statements, free credit reports, and any health insurance Explanation of Benefits (EOB) forms for unauthorized or suspicious activity and reporting any unusual activity to law enforcement.
“The privacy and security of the information we maintain is very important to us, and we remain committed to doing everything we can to maintain the confidentiality of such information,” said County Manager, Allen Cook. “The County will continue to invest in the internal processes, tools, and resources to reduce the likelihood of future security incidents.”