Gooding County, Idaho officials this week notified an undisclosed number of people about a ransomware attack on the county’s computer network.
The county notified victims whose personal info was compromised in the resulting data breach. The notice says the county first detected the cyber attack on March 25, 2025.
“On April 4, 2025, as part of its ongoing investigation, the County determined that this incident likely involved unauthorized acquisition of personal information, as defined by Idaho law,” says the county’s notice (PDF) to victims.
The county has not disclosed how many people the breach impacted, what data was compromised, or if it did or will a ransom. Comparitech contacted Gooding County officials for comment and will update this article if it replies.
The notice says the county will offer eligible victims free credit monitoring, which usually implies that Social Security numbers and/or other information that could be used for identity theft were compromised.
No ransomware gang has publicly claimed responsibility for the attack as of time of writing.
Ransomware attacks on US government
In addition to data theft, ransomware attacks on US government entities can disrupt computer access to essential services, payments, communications, and stored files. Officials must then either pay a ransom or face extended downtime, data loss, and putting constituents at increased risk of fraud.
Comparitech researchers logged 14 confirmed ransomware attacks on US government entities so far in 2025. Another 19 unconfirmed attacks were claimed by ransomware gangs but not confirmed by the targeted organizations.
Like Gooding County, Union County, Pennsylvania was also hit by a ransomware attack by unknown attackers in March 2025.
Other recently confirmed ransomware attacks on local governments include:
- RansomwHub claimed responsibility for attacks on the Lower Sioux Indian Community, the city of Tarrant, AL; the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians; and the town of Bourne, MA
- Qilin claimed attacks on the city of West Haven, CT and the Cleveland, OH Municipal Court
- Inc Ransomware claimed attacks on Anne Arundel County, MD and the State Bar of Texas
About Gooding County, ID
Gooding County is located in south-central Idaho. The population is about 15,600 people. The county seat is Gooding.
