Kootenai County approves cybersecurity forensics agreement pending legal review

Kootenai County commissioners voted unanimously on April 7 to approve an agreement with Crowe LLP for cyber‑forensic services tied to an active cyber event, with final signature subject to a pending county legal review.

Grant Kinsey of the county's information technology team told the board the agreement will let a cyber‑forensics team begin work quickly. "Time is of the essence that we get this agreement in place so that they can begin work on [a] cyber event we're looking into," Kinsey said. He added the matter has been coordinated with the Idaho Counties Risk Management Program (ICRMP) and that "I believe the deductible is set at $10,000," meaning the county likely would meet that deductible and insurance would cover additional contracted costs.

Kinsey told commissioners the county has not yet received a written legal opinion and asked that the board allow execution of the agreement "pending a legal opinion" so staff can finalize signatures once counsel clears the contract. A commissioner moved approval with the legal review condition; the motion passed on a recorded voice vote.

Why it matters: the county did not disclose details of the cyber incident during the public meeting, but the expedited procurement and Kinsey's remarks indicate staff consider immediate forensic work necessary to assess impacts and preserve evidence. The board's approval authorizes staff to finalize the arrangement after legal review and to proceed with forensic work that county leaders say is time‑sensitive.

Next steps: county legal staff will complete their review and staff will return with the finalized agreement for signature if the review is favorable.