Rotary computer systems damage in June 2018

On 15 June, Rotary International World Headquarters in Evanston, Illinois, USA, experienced a water leak in our data center that caused severe damage to hardware.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and are working diligently to resolve the issues as quickly as possible.

What caused the problems with Rotary’s computer systems?

On 15 June, we suffered a water leak at Rotary International World Headquarters in Evanston, Illinois, USA. The water damaged critical hardware in our data center, briefly making Rotary’s systems unavailable.

Temporary replacement hardware was installed quickly, and most of our critical systems are working again, but many are working more slowly than usual. As we continue to make repairs, intermittent planned outages will occur. You may notice that pages are loading slowly or that information does not sync right away.

When will Rotary’s systems work normally again?

All of Rotary’s computer systems are being moved to new servers. This will take some time. We are doing everything we can to resolve these issues as quickly as possible.

We appreciate your patience and apologize for any inconvenience these service reductions may cause.

Has my data been compromised?

No. Any information you entered into Rotary’s systems before or since the hardware damage occurred is secure. Your data may not be available to you immediately, but it has not been lost.

Was any data lost when the damage occurred?

No Rotarian data was lost. Some other data was damaged. It will be restored or recreated, but this will take some time. We take great precautions to protect your data and will do everything possible to ensure that no information is lost when we move it to the new servers.

How does this affect year-end activities?

Information processing related to year-end activities will be delayed by a few weeks. This means that information may not be available right away, but it will be restored soon.

I made a contribution to The Rotary Foundation after 15 June, and it hasn’t been processed yet. Will it be recorded as a contribution I made during 2017-18?

Yes. All contributions made to The Rotary Foundation 30 June or earlier will be recognized as being made in 2017-18. It will take a few weeks for Rotary to process all year-end contributions and make updated reports available.