Municipalities are relying on new concepts in cybersecurity

Cybersecurity in municipalities “The biggest security gap is people” As of: October 26, 2026 • 6:56 p.m

A community pays for a large order - but the money ends up with criminals. Because such scams are becoming more and more common, municipalities are relying on new concepts to combat cybercrime - and need well-trained staff.

A cyber attack in which all of the community's files are encrypted and can no longer be accessed - that would be a worst-case scenario in the community of Marquartstein in the Traunstein district. In such a case, blackmailers would demand a ransom in order to make the data accessible again.

If there are signs of such an attack, “our employees are instructed to immediately pull the network plug,” says Mayor Andreas Scheck. In the worst case, you have to reinstall the system and use the backup. “Normal operation would then take a few days, emergency operation is realistic within two days,” said the mayor.

Well-trained staff is the be-all and end-all - says Claus Hofmann, cybersecurity officer at the Traunstein district office. Because the biggest security gap is people. "We assume that nine out of ten successful cyber attacks always have something to do with people." This is mainly about fake emails, which can often no longer be distinguished from real ones. “It runs via AI, completely automated, completely error-free,” says Hofmann.

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To do this, the fraudsters steal information from business partners. In the worst case, they gain access to their IT system and write to the municipalities using the real email address and send deceptively real invoices. "It goes to the community via a school bus contractor," says Claus Hofmann, "everything is correct - the invoice, the activities carried out - only the account number is wrong."

A community in the Traunstein district has already fallen victim to such a scam. "We're talking about an amount between 80,000 and 140,000 euros." But we have learned from this case, says Hofmann. It is now mandatory for employees in the offices to inquire by telephone if a business partner changes their account details.

Digitalization: Municipalities demand more financial support and fewer legal hurdles Fabian Siegel/Peter Wedig, SWR, tagesthemen, Das Erste, June 1st, 2026 • 10:30 p.m. "Penetration tests": On the trail of the fraudsters The State Office for Information Security (LSI) in Nuremberg knows the strategies of the cyber attackers. The LSI carries out so-called penetration tests. The employees put themselves in the perspective of the attackers and specifically look for security gaps in the systems of cities and municipalities. They must always keep an eye on advances in artificial intelligence.

Thanks to AI, vulnerabilities in IT systems are becoming known more quickly than before and are becoming more widespread, says Pierre Reuter, head of penetration testing at the LSI. In addition, less expertise is required to carry out an attack. “It is no longer necessary to have a deep technical understanding; it is more about using AI tools. And we have to keep up and use AI ourselves to see where it can help us.”

A weak point that Pierre Reuter and his colleagues repeatedly come across is outdated software. He therefore recommends that companies and authorities take the regular updates seriously.

This topic in the program: Bayern 2 | News | Oct 23, 2026 | 06:00 amThe First | daily topics | Oct 12, 2026 | 10:30 p.m