FORT WORTH, Texas — The Tarrant Appraisal District website was down part of Thursday after a “network disruption,” and the district says they’re working with independent cybersecurity experts to help investigate the incident.
The website crash came a week after the launch of Tarrant Appraisal District’s new website. The district’s new website was reportedly launched early, prompted by a database failure that caused its old website to crash.
“We have taken prompt action to secure the network, and we are working with leading independent cybersecurity experts to assist with our response and the restoration process,” the Tarrant Appraisal District said in a statement. “Please know that our team is working diligently to restore our systems and data in the safest and most secure manner possible. Our ability to respond to your messages may be delayed.”
It’s unclear what caused the disruption, but the website was back up by about 2 p.m. Thursday.
The agency experienced a security breach in 2022, as WFAA reported, but an investigation determined there was no evidence that any taxpayer information was accessed or compromised.
Former chief appraiser and executive director of the Tarrant Appraisal District, Jeff Law, reportedly resigned last year shortly after the district’s former director of information systems was fired amid an investigation into allegations that raised questions about the cause of website problems users experienced last April and May.
Joe Don Bobbitt was named the Tarrant Appraisal District’s new chief appraiser late last year.
The Tarrant Appraisal District is responsible for property tax appraisal and exemption administration in Tarrant County.
The cities of Dallas and Fort Worth also experienced cyberattacks last year.
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