Friday 16 October 2026
Evening Edition
ZOTPAPER

News without the noise

ZOTPAPER
Security

Cyberattack on BAE Systems disrupts US bankruptcy court notice system

Federal judiciary says contractor is investigating incident as court websites go offline

By LineZotpaper
Published
Read Time2 min
A cyberattack on government contractor BAE Systems has taken down the notice system used by US federal bankruptcy courts, the Administrative Office of the US Courts said on Thursday. The incident has also halted the production and distribution of bankruptcy notices and left several court-operated websites inaccessible.

On Thursday, the Administrative Office of the US Courts said the attack disrupted the Bankruptcy Noticing Center (BNC) systems that BAE Systems operates on behalf of the federal judiciary. "As a result of the incident, all access to the BNC systems and websites that BAE operates on behalf of the Judiciary and the related bankruptcy noticing process are unavailable at this time," the office said. The affected services include bnc.uscourts.gov, bankruptcynotices.uscourts.gov, notices.uscourts.gov and the National Creditor Registration Service.

The office said it has been in communication with impacted courts and is coordinating with BAE Systems. "BAE is actively investigating this incident and working to restore operations," it said.

BAE Systems is Europe's largest defense contractor. It designs and manufactures military technology for the UK and US defense departments and is a major provider of enterprise IT, cloud infrastructure and cybersecurity services to government agencies worldwide.

The disruption follows earlier cybersecurity problems in the federal courts. The judiciary said last year that it was strengthening defenses after a cyberattack affected its electronic case management systems. At the time, Politico reported that hackers had breached CM/ECF electronic case management systems and the PACER federal court document platform, gaining access to sensitive data, including the identities of confidential informants. The judiciary said it has added stricter access controls for sealed filings containing sensitive information.

BleepingComputer reports that US Courts and BAE Systems spokespeople were not immediately available for comment.

§

Analysis

Why This Matters

  • The bankruptcy noticing system is a critical part of federal court operations, and its outage affects creditors, debtors and lawyers who rely on official notices in bankruptcy cases.
  • The incident highlights the federal judiciary's dependence on a single private contractor for essential services, and the broader risk of cyberattacks on government supply chains.
  • It follows a pattern of sophisticated attacks on the federal courts, which previously acknowledged targeting of its case management systems.

Background

The Administrative Office of the US Courts runs the administrative functions of the federal judiciary. BAE Systems, Europe's largest defense contractor, operates the Bankruptcy Noticing Center under contract. The center generates and distributes notices in bankruptcy cases and maintains the National Creditor Registration Service.

Last year, the judiciary said it was taking additional steps to protect sensitive case documents in response to what it described as escalated cyberattacks of a sophisticated and persistent nature on its case management system. Politico reported that the earlier incident involved breaches of CM/ECF and PACER systems and exposure of sensitive data.

Key Perspectives

Administrative Office of the US Courts: The office says it is communicating with affected courts and coordinating with BAE Systems. It has not said when the bankruptcy noticing process will be restored. BAE Systems: The contractor, according to the judiciary's statement, is actively investigating the incident and working to restore operations. It has not yet issued a public statement about the cause or scope of the attack. Critics and security observers: The incident renews questions about the security of court IT systems after reports that an earlier breach of CM/ECF and PACER exposed sensitive data, including confidential informant identities. Critics may ask whether contractors operating critical court systems face sufficient oversight.

What to Watch

  • Whether BAE Systems and the judiciary restore access to the affected websites and the National Creditor Registration Service.
  • Any disclosure from BAE Systems about the nature of the attack, including whether data was accessed.
  • How federal bankruptcy courts handle notice deadlines during the outage and whether the disruption delays cases.

Sources

Zotpaper

Written by software from the reporting listed above, scored by an automated standards desk, and published without a person reading it first. If something here is wrong, tell the editor and it will be put right.

How we workSubscribe