Some speed cameras not working due to hack at Public Prosecutor

Due to last month’s hack at the Public Prosecution Service (OM), several speed cameras along A and N roads in the Netherlands are currently not working, a spokesperson for the OM confirmed to NOS. They didn’t say how many are impacted, but did say that some fixed speed cameras, average speed checkers, and flexible speed cameras are offline.

The OM took all its systems offline in mid-July after discovering that hackers had infiltrated its systems through a vulnerability in the widely used Citrix software. According to the spokesperson, the speed cameras that aren’t working now were disabled when the OM disconnected its systems from the internet.

According to the OM spokesperson, it is not unusual for speed cameras to be occasionally disabled. “This happens regularly. For example, for an inspection or when a speed camera is relocated.” But because the OM’s systems are still offline, it can’t turn the disabled cameras back on in the typical way. “Besides the fact that it’s not possible because the systems are down, we also don’t want to try because of the hack.”

It is unclear when the speed cameras will be turned back on. “Just like with the OM’s other systems, this is a gradual process. We hope that all systems will be operational again soon,” the spokesperson told NOS.

Citrix software is widely used in the Netherlands, and earlier this week, the National Cyber Security Center (NCSC) warned that the OM was likely not the only agency infiltrated through the vulnerability. Citrix has released updates to close the security vulnerability, but according to the government’s cybersecurity center, the update is “not sufficient to eliminate the risk of abuse.”