Vanuatu government cyberattack disrupts nationwide public services and administrative operations

A major cyberattack against the Government of Vanuatu in late October 2022 disabled government servers, websites, email and other information systems used across the public sector. Government workers subsequently resorted to personal email, paper records and manual administrative procedures. Reporting documented delayed payments, interruptions to government communications, disruptions in public-service delivery and difficulties moving goods through affected administrative processes. Hospital personnel also relied on manual documentation while government digital infrastructure remained impaired. Government systems were still experiencing significant problems approximately one month after the attack. Investigative reporting placed the initial system crash on October 30, although an earlier government account identified November 5. The incident represents a substantial multi-agency disruption to public-sector operations.