Virus attacks highway patrol computer system

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A computer virus caused a blip in the Missouri State Highway Patrol's administrative operations but did not affect law enforcement activities, patrol officials said Thursday.

The problem began Wednesday afternoon after a virus was inadvertently introduced into the computer network used by the patrol, said Capt. Chris Ricks, a patrol spokesman.

Ricks said the virus primarily affected administrative systems at the patrol's Jefferson City headquarters and did not impact essential law enforcement systems such as dispatch communications or the public alert system known as MULES.

"It was just an inconvenience to those of us who work in the office in Jefferson City. It came in the back door on us. All systems are online now," Ricks said Thursday. "There was no public safety or officer safety issues."

Ricks said technicians had sealed off the virus from the network by early Thursday. Ricks said there are about 2,000 personal computers throughout the patrol and it remained unclear how many were hit by the virus.

He said it did not appear that any data had been lost.

The virus was identified as MSBlast, which attacks certain Microsoft systems. When introduced through Internet connections, the virus spreads throughout a computer network and shuts it down.

A similar virus was blamed for shutting down thousands of computers worldwide. Earlier this week, the virus forced Maryland's motor vehicle agency to close for the day and kicked Swedish Internet users offline.

Ricks said officials remained concerned that another virus attack could pose a more serious threat to safety.

"Our fear is that these people think this is some kind of game," Ricks said. "What happens if it does affect the safety of our officers? The kind of danger posed to our officers would be intense."

The virus also affected other parts of state government served by the State Data Center but had little impact, said Ann Hamlin, a spokeswoman for the Office of Administration. The agency oversees the State Data Center, which is separate from the Highway Patrol system.

"Emergency services were up and running the whole time," said Hamlin, who declined to say which agencies had experienced problems with the virus.