Digital Security Guide

Impact of cyber-attacks

All employees have a responsibility to protect our systems and data. 

There are legal consequences for organisations that fail to ensure that appropriate technical and organisational measures are in place to protect data being handled.

Recent action

The Information Commissioners Office has taken enforcement action against a number of organisations:

In July 2024, the Electoral Commission was reprimanded for a cyber-attack that occurred between August 2021 and October 2022. This breach allowed a threat actor to access personal data of approximately 40 million individuals.

Also in July 2024, the London Borough of Hackney were reprimanded following a cyber-attack that led to hackers encrypting 440,000 files, affecting 280,000 residents and staff.