# City of Coweta Refuses Ransom After Cyberattack

The City of Coweta, Oklahoma, experienced a ransomware cyberattack that encrypted municipal systems but did not impact payment or emergency services. City officials, led by City Manager Julie Casteen, refused to pay the ransom demand and are restoring systems from offsite backups with a target of full recovery by Monday. Federal investigators, including the FBI, and IT specialists are actively involved in the investigation. The city is simultaneously upgrading its cybersecurity infrastructure to prevent future incidents.

- **Why this matters:** Municipalities and government agencies should evaluate their cybersecurity resilience and backup strategies to mitigate ransomware risks.
- Procurement professionals should anticipate increased demand for cybersecurity solutions, incident response services, and secure backup technologies.
- Organizations providing cybersecurity upgrades and forensic investigation services may find new contracting opportunities with local governments enhancing defenses post-incident.
- This incident underscores the importance of segregated payment systems and cloud-based protections to safeguard sensitive citizen data.

**Jurisdictions:** sled
**Industries:** Public Safety, Information Technology
**Topics:** Cybersecurity
**Published:** August 09, 2026

### Government Entities
- City of Coweta
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

### Key Quotes
> There has been no infiltration onto our city payment system. That is a separate system held in the cloud and we can assure you that no citizen payment information has been accessed.
> — City Official

> They’ve demanded a ransom. We don’t know what the amount is because we’re not communicating with them. We just refuse to do that.
> — Julie Casteen, City Manager

### Sources
- [Coweta Cyberattack: City Refuses Ransom, Vows Full Recovery by Monday](https://www.kobaran.com/coweta-cyberattack-city-refuses-ransom-vows-full-recovery-by-monday) - kobaran.com