2.4M Government data stolen in cyber attack, minister confirms, but risk to public ‘low’
Government data was stolen during a cyber attack on a UK government department, though ministers say the risk to individuals is believed to be low.
Trade Minister Chris Bryant confirmed that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office was hacked in October and said an investigation remains ongoing. He told broadcasters that the security vulnerability was identified and closed quickly.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Bryant said officials did not yet know who was responsible for the attack, despite reports suggesting a Chinese state affiliated hacking group may have been involved.
Government data stolen
“We think it is a fairly low risk that individuals will have been compromised or affected,” he said. “The investigation is still ongoing, and it is simply not clear at this stage who carried out the attack.”
The comments follow a report in the Sun newspaper, which claimed the breach occurred in October and may have involved sensitive information, including visa related data. The paper suggested a Chinese cyber group was responsible.
The incident has been referred to the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Bryant urged caution over speculation, stressing that attributing responsibility for cyber attacks often takes time.
“There certainly has been a hack at the FCDO and we have been aware of it since October,” he told Sky News. “But some of the reporting has gone further than the facts currently support.”
He compared the incident to other recent cyber attacks affecting major organisations, including Jaguar Land Rover, Marks and Spencer and the British Library.
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“These incidents show how important it is that we continue to take cyber security seriously and prevent attacks wherever possible,” he said.
Bryant said the breach was linked to a technical issue on one of the department’s systems and that officials acted swiftly once it was identified.
“We managed to close the hole very quickly,” he said. “We are fairly confident there is a low risk to any individual. I do not want to scaremonger based on speculation about what might have been accessed.”
When asked directly whether China was behind the attack, Bryant said the evidence did not yet allow investigators to draw that conclusion.
“That is not entirely clear,” he said.
UK intelligence agencies have repeatedly warned of increasing cyber espionage activity linked to China, targeting political, commercial and strategic information. However, officials have not formally attributed this latest incident to any specific state or group.
The Sun reported that a group known as Storm 1849 may have been responsible and claimed tens of thousands of visa records could have been affected. The newspaper said the group has previously been accused of targeting politicians and organisations critical of the Chinese government.
A government spokesperson said authorities were continuing to investigate.
“We have been working to assess a cyber incident,” the spokesperson said. “We take the security of our systems and data extremely seriously and are taking appropriate action.”
