ALMA Services Affected by Cyberattack

November 2, 2022

Dear colleagues,

The Joint ALMA Observatory released the following statement today regarding a recent cyberattack that has affected ALMA services:

Last Saturday, October 29, at 6:14 AM, the ALMA observatory in Chile suffered a cyberattack on its computer systems, forcing the suspension of astronomical observations and the public website. There are limited email services at the observatory. The threat has been contained, and our specialists are working hard to restore affected systems. The attack did not compromise the ALMA antennas or any scientific data. Given the nature of the episode, it is not yet possible to estimate a timeline for a return to regular activities. We are thankful for the support and understanding across the ALMA partnership and apologize for any inconveniences resulting from the recovery efforts.

We regret any inconvenience or impact experienced by our ALMA users due to this situation. We will post updates on the Science Portal when new information becomes available regarding return of services and operations.

If you have any questions, or have comments or concerns, please contact your local ALMA Regional Center via the ALMA Helpdesk at https://help.almascience.org/.