CARSON CITY, NV — After nearly three weeks of disruption, Nevada’s firearm background check system is back online. State officials confirmed Monday morning that the Brady Firearms Unit resumed operations at 8:00 a.m., restoring the ability of federally licensed dealers to process transfers for most buyers.
The outage, caused by a cyberattack on August 24, had left gun stores across the state unable to legally transfer firearms to customers without a concealed carry permit. The backlog of pending checks piled up during the shutdown, frustrating both dealers and buyers who were left in limbo.
“I’m pleased to announce access to the Brady Firearms Unit was successfully restored this morning,” said Governor Joe Lombardo. “I’m grateful to the Governor’s Technology Office and Department of Public Safety who worked 24/7 to restore access to this essential public safety service.”
According to the announcement, dealers with access to the FFL Portal can immediately submit background checks electronically. Phone support has also been restored for those without portal access, though the state warned of potential delays as systems stabilize.
Brady staff will be working extended hours to handle the surge of pending transactions and are committed to meeting the three-business-day statutory timeline for determinations. However, state officials cautioned that some cases may remain in “pending review” longer than usual due to the backlog.
During the outage, gun dealers across Nevada reported growing stacks of firearms waiting for transfer and expressed concern that lawful customers were being denied their constitutional right to purchase arms. With the system now restored, those transactions can move forward, though it may take days for the backlog to clear.
The state emphasized that restoration of services is being done in stages, with cybersecurity remaining the top priority. For continued updates on the recovery process, Nevadans can visit oem.nv.gov/recovery.
This restoration is welcome news for firearm dealers and customers alike. The outage demonstrated how dependent lawful firearm transactions are on state-controlled systems, and how quickly Second Amendment rights can be disrupted when those systems fail. With background checks once again operational, dealers are urging customers to be patient as they work through the surge in submissions.
Why would a “cyber attack” slow down the hand processing and delivery of the affected weapon(s) to the customer immediately after the prescribed waiting period was over?
Am I thinking of something federal vs state on this?
I thought the entire point of providing a MAXIMUM amount of time in which any background check had to be completed was specifically added to the law precisely to deal with this kind of situation (among others).
That the background check law was written to intentionally make sure a “system problem” could not interfere with a transaction once those 5 days had passed, whether or not it was a computer problem, a power problem, a paper processing problem, a slow-walker anti-gun obstructor in the processing office, and so on. It was to prevent abuse of the system by any anti-gun political idealogue employed in the processing chain.