Personal data taken in UK legal aid cyber attack

Britain’s Legal Aid Agency reported a cyber attack which it said had resulted in a group accessing and downloading a “significant” amount of personal data from those who digitally applied for legal aid since 2010.

The attack was detected on April 23, but the agency has since determined that it is “more extensive than originally understood and that the group behind it had accessed a large amount of information relating to legal aid applicants,” the UK government said in a statement.

The government said that impacted data “may have included contact details and addresses of applicants, their dates of birth, national ID numbers, criminal history, employment status and financial data such as contribution amounts, debts and payments.”

It urged people who had accessed legal aid to be “extra vigilant to update any potentially exposed passwords” and to vet their phone calls and emails carefully.

Legal Aid Agency CEO Jane Harbottle said the news “will be shocking and upsetting for people and I am extremely sorry this has happened.”

Harbottle said online services had been taken down while incident response remains underway.

She added: “We have put in place the necessary contingency plans to ensure those most in need of legal support and advice can continue to access the help they need during this time.