La Porte IT director warns of thousands of daily cyberattacks, introduces interns and new tech staff

Roscoe Hoffman, the city's IT lead, told the La Porte Board of Works on Aug. 4 that the city sees a high volume of attempted cyberattacks and that staff training is critical for defense. "We can get from between 5 to 10,000 attacks in a day," Hoffman said, and he emphasized ongoing training to help employees recognize and respond to threats.

Hoffman introduced two staffers he said have strengthened the department: Chris Thompson, an intern from Purdue Northwest who is entering his senior year in computer information technology, and Bryson Fear, a systems technician who joined IT five months ago. Hoffman said the department expanded staffing and training to improve detection, response and resilience; Thompson and Fear detailed their roles in monitoring and supporting city systems.

Hoffman told the board the attacks span email and firewall probes and reinforced why the city invests in staff training and monitoring tools. The board thanked Hoffman for the update and the mayor expressed appreciation for IT's work defending city systems.