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Cyberattack makes continued operation of the platform impossible – no sensitive data affected
The city of Weiterstadt has announced that the "Vigilant Neighbor" discontinued on September 18, 2025. The digital service is therefore no longer available.
Reason: Serious cyberattack
The reason for the shutdown is a massive cyberattack on the project's host server. All data – including all backups – was encrypted. The server had to be completely shut down and rebuilt. Data recovery is impossible, which is why operations have been permanently discontinued.
No sensitive data affected
According to the city of Weiterstadt, no sensitive information such as financial or health data was affected. However, since the log files were also encrypted, it cannot be definitively determined whether any data was leaked. In the theoretical event of a data breach, unwanted contact such as spam calls could occur.
It is unclear whether a replacement project will be implemented.
Whether there will be a successor to the "Neighborhood Watch" program in the future is currently undecided. New information will be made public as soon as it becomes available. The city thanks all previous users for their trust and participation.
(Weiterstadt - Red/PSW)