SD taxpayers spend millions on cyberattacks after federal grant rejected
A television screen was offline at the Pennington County Administration Building in Rapid City, S.D. on July 28, 2026. (PHOTO: BART PFANKUCH / SOUTH DAKOTA NEWS WATCH)
South Dakota turned down millions of dollars in federal cybersecurity grants and instead is spending more than $7 million in state taxpayer funds to battle what has become a constant threat of attacks on computer systems used by government, industry and individuals.
In addition to recent high-profile cyberattacks on government operations in Pennington County, Rapid City and Mitchell, the South Dako…
