The interim results of the forensic investigation following the cyber-attack on Tuesday, 7 November, has established that data stored on Comhairle nan Eilean Siar’s operational and backup servers cannot be accessed.
The investigative team led by Police Scotland, the National Cyber Security Centre and Scottish Government alongside the Comhairle’s IT team has been able to access the Comhairle’s servers but has not been able to access the data stored on them.
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar will continue to engage with and seek advice from expert organisations to monitor and mitigate the impact of this incident.
There is currently no indication that any data has been extracted from the server or published. Comhairle nan Eilean Siar will communicate with those impacted if this situation changes.
Moving forward the Comhairle has two key priorities:
- To identify any information extracted from the server and inform those impacted.
- To rebuild operations and ensure the continued delivery of services to those in our community that need them most.
Malcolm Burr, Chief Executive of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, said:
“The Comhairle has been the victim of a cyber-crime which has caused significant damage and is having an impact on the delivery of many of our key services. Our priority is always the people of the Western Isles, and we will continue to work to ensure that the impact of this crime on everyone is lessened. This incident once again demonstrates the vulnerability of all public bodies to the growing threat of cyber-attacks.”
The impact of this incident to specific Comhairle services will be communicated in separate and regular updates.
The Comhairle has established an incident management team to lead on the response to this incident.