In a perplexing development, on Wednesday, November 4, the Queens Public Library (QPL) system in New York City, which runs 66 branches, fell prey to a cyber intruder targeting its online networks. The entire library network has gone offline and is being held hostage for ransom.
According to QPL officials, all branches remain open to the public, but the online infrastructure is down, disrupting access to the library website, on-site computers, self-checkout and return kiosks, Wi‑Fi, the library’s mobile app, and all digital media services.
There has been no disclosure about the ransom amount or the demands, nor is there clarity on who is responsible for the ransomware incident.
QPL chief executive Dennis Walcott told Gothamist, “Unfortunately, it’s part of the world that we live in right now. So the Queens Public Library is a victim of the type of world that we’re living in, where people are launching cyber attacks against various types of entities, large corporations, and now Queens Public Library.”
His remark underscores how odd the episode is: the QPL is hardly a “large corporation.” In reality, it operates as a small nonprofit. It isn’t even New York’s largest library system. The New York Public Library, serving Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island, operates 92 locations, while the Brooklyn Public Library runs 62 branches.
But also… it’s a library system! Its entire raison d’être is to provide broad access to books, additional literary and media resources, internet access, printing services, educational opportunities, and community and children’s programming to people. FOR FREE. Who could be so callous as to target a library system, especially one serving one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse communities in the world? (As a Queens native and a big fan of QPL, I’m furious.)
Walcott also noted that it remains to be seen whether any user information has been compromised.
Nevertheless, QPL users can still check books in and out manually (after all, it is a library). So, analog technology has briefly saved the day.
More updates are forthcoming, and long live libraries!
