Cyber incidents up by more than a third

Commenting on the latest figures, Kingsley Hayes, head of data breach, said:

“The overall picture shows that there has been a 15% decrease in the total number of data violations in Q2 compared to the same period last year. However, while that is reassuring, individuals should remain on alert as cyber-related breaches jumped by more than a third.

“As Covid means a greater reliance on online shopping, it is concerning, but not unexpected, to see that the retail and manufacturing sector was the hardest hit by cyber incidents, most of which were due to phishing.

“At the same time, the health sector remains the most affected by breaches due to human error. And as our health and social care system becomes increasingly digital, there are concerns that the robust protections required to prevent this from happening are simply not in place. This is particularly worrying with the pandemic posing incredible challenges. Indeed, in December 2020 almost 300 patients involved in an NHS Highland data breach in a non-cyber related incident, while in March 2020, the Maze ransomware group attacked the computer systems of Hammersmith Medicines Research (HMR), a company which performs early clinical trials of drugs and vaccines.

With the pandemic and Brexit continuing to challenge all sectors as we navigate uncharted waters, the focus, investment, and commitment needed to protect personal information, must be a top priority.”