🛡️ The Afghan Data Breach – A Wake-Up Call for Public Sector Data Governance In July 2025, the veil of secrecy was finally lifted on one of the most catastrophic data breaches in UK government history. A spreadsheet leaked by a Ministry of Defence (MoD) official exposed the personal details of nearly 19,000 Afghan nationals […]
The Afghan Data Breach – A Wake-Up Call for Public Sector Data Governance Read More »
Over four years after the implementation of GDPR across Europe, three clear leaders have emerged in terms of the numbers of fines issued for breaches of Articles 32, 33 and 34. According to the GDPR Enforcement Tracker website, the most prolific regulators are: Romania – 47 fines Italy – 32 fines Spain – 32 fines
Romania, Italy and Spain Lead the Way in GDPR Fines Read More »
The overriding message from this year’s Cyber Breaches Survey is that little has changed. The headline figure of organisations experiencing a cyber breach or attack remains exactly the same as last year at 39%. As normal, phishing attacks remain the most prevalent for of attack (83%). Digging down into a bit more detail there is
Little has Changed in Latest UK Government Cyber Breaches Survey Read More »
To their great credit, the Irish Health Service Executive (HSE) has published the full post-incident report into last year’s Conti ransomware attack. Prepared for them by PwC, the report is a fascinating read and allows us all to learn from the HSE’s unfortunate experience. The initial infection took place on 18th March 2021, when a
What Lessons can we learn from the Conti Ransomware Attack on the Irish HSE? Read More »
Whilst discussions of information security tend to focus on high-tech cyber attacks; the reality is that many data breaches are down to human error. Generally the biggest single cause of data breaches reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office is simply people sending information to the wrong people. Loss or theft of devices is another significant
Possible Decrease in Lost Devices by UK Government Departments Read More »
Concerns are growing about the impact of a ransomware attack on one of the major oil pipeline networks in the US. The Colonial Pipeline, which carries 100 million gallons of refined oil products a day from Houston as far North as New York, has been closed since Friday following a ransomware attack. Emergency legislation has
Will Ransomware Attack Lead to Fuel Shortages in the US? Read More »
Only 48 hours after the dramatic launch of Alex Salmond’s Alba Party, the Herald on Sunday reported that the names of more than 4,000 people who had signed up to attend party events were inadvertently made public. Amusingly (or not, depending on your viewpoint), the list apparently contained a number of high-profile SNP members. The
The GDPR Enforcement Tracker website shows a dramatic increase in the number of fines being issued for data breaches in recent months. Across Europe only 75 fines were levied in the first two years after GDPR came into force, or about 3 fines per month. However, in the last 9 months a further 72 fines
Nearly a week on from Sky News breaking the story that Serco had been the victim of a ransomware attack, details of the incident are still very sketchy. From a UK perspective, we are being reassured that the attack has only affected systems on mainland Europe; so that the NHS Test and Trace programme is
