How Seattle Public Library’s cyberattack impacts patrons, students

Amy Easton came into the Lake City branch with a backpack stuffed with books that needed to be checked in, but was told to hold onto them due to the ransomware attack. She has used the audiobook and digital book app from the library, Libby, for years. She listens to books while doing chores, gardening and other activities.

She was unable to return an audiobook she listened to on the app when she discovered the ransomware attack. E-book and e-audiobook access were restored on June 13, and Easton was surprised by how quickly the library is putting things back together after the attack.

Easton isn’t as concerned about the data breach, saying “It’s something that we kind of have to live with in this day and age.”

She and her partner come into the library once a week to read magazines and see what’s new. They were very disheartened by the attack.

“Third spaces are few and far between, and the library is one of the last civic institutions that we have, that really bind us all together,” Easton said. “I want my tax dollars going here, I want the library to be strong and vital because it’s important for all of us.”

Eighty-year-old Joan Abrevaya has used library services since arriving in Seattle from Los Angeles in 1984.

She is the longest-tenured volunteer for Friends of the Library at the Central Library, which she calls her favorite building in the city. Abrevaya said she regularly checks out books, and has more than 30 library books piled up near her bedside since the ransomware attack occurred.

“It’s hard for me to imagine attacking the library. First of all, they don’t have the money, and it is such an essential part of so many of our lives,” Abrevaya said. “For me, libraries have always been a central part of my life … fortunately, the library is still open and functioning, but for people who depend on the computers, it’s a life-changer in a very negative way.”