Explanation
1. BACKGROUND
This ordinance authorizes the Director of the Department of Technology, through the City Attorney, to enter into a contract modification with Dinsmore & Shohl LLP to allow for additional funding for the firm and their named cybersecurity subcontractors (RSM US LLP, Digital Mint, Haystack, Experian, CDWG and others) for legal and incident response services in regard to the recent cybersecurity incident.
On July 18, 2024, the city's Department of Technology discovered evidence of an abnormality in its system, one that was unrelated to a co-occurring global IT outage. The city took swift action to significantly limit potential exposure, including severing internet connectivity, to reduce the threat to the city's systems. The Department of Technology worked diligently and continues to remediate this cybersecurity incident (the "Incident") and restore the city's electronic security and safety.
On July 30, 2024, Mayor Ginther executed a Mayor’s Emergency Letter and declared the Incident to be a clear and present danger to public health, safety, welfare or property. It was then necessary to enter into a legal professional services contract with Dinsmore & Shohl LLC and their named cybersecurity subcontractors (RSM US LLP, Digital Mint, Haystack, Experian, CDWG and others) for an amount up to $4,000,000.00 to provide breach counsel services in response to the Incident. The Department, through the City Attorney, chose Dinsmore & Shohl LLC, due to its being a law firm with a national reputation for data breach response excellence that also has a strong presence in Ohio. Dinsmore's Data Breach Team consists of attorneys with decades of combined experience who are dedicated solely to critical, cybersecurity incident response.
It is now necessary to modify the original contract with Dinsmore in order to add funding in the amount of $3,000,000.00 to cover additional costs that have accumulated due to the Incident. The original contract amount was ...
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