News and Updates on Information Technology

United Kingdom – Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council

Exploit: Ransomware

Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council: Local municipality and resort town government

Risk to Small Business: 2.111 = Severe

A ransomware attack has disabled nearly all online services for this UK-based resort town government. Employees are unable to access appointment software, planning documents, citizen complaint systems, and other critical functions – causing delays in municipal services and distress to the public. Even if it avoids paying the ransom, this municipality will still be plagued by productivity losses and other expenses that promise to make this attack a costly cybersecurity incident.

Individual Risk: At this time, no personal information was compromised in the breach.

Customers Impacted: 135,000

How it Could Affect Your Customers’ Business: Cybercriminals are increasingly using ransomware attacks to target vulnerable organizations, especially systems with outdated technology or lax cybersecurity standards. These attacks were already incredibly costly, but many criminals have begun stealing and releasing company data before encrypting a network. This compounds the cost and raises the stakes for achieving a robust defensive posture that can address these attacks.

Source:
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-51504482?intlink_from_url=&link_location=live-reporting-story