Technology

Sundance box office closed by cyberattack

A cyberattack led to the Sundance Film Festival box office being temporarily shut down over the weekend.

Sundance, one of the world’s biggest movie festivals, is currently taking place in Park City, Utah. The ticket purchasing system problem was disclosed on Saturday morning – the third day of the event – and was partially restored approximately 45 minutes later.

As well as the attack on the box office, Sundance also suffered a wide-ranging internet failure on Saturday as businesses and festival events were hobbled by a complete lack of internet access.

A statement read: “The Sundance Film Festival has been subject to a cyberattack, causing network outages that shut down our box offices. Service at the Salt Lake City Main Box Office has since been restored, and our team is working hard to get our Park City system back up and running as soon as possible. No further information about the attack is available at this time. All screenings will still take place as planned.”

Sundance attracted 46,660 attendees in 2016 and is the largest independent film festival in the US.

Several news sources reported that the cyberattack occurred shortly after comedian Chelsea Handler led a Women’s March in Park City to protest the inauguration of new US President Donald Trump.