Irish Firm Working On Major State Projects Attacked By Suspected Russian Hackers
AN IRISH COMPANY which has contracts for several State infrastructure projects suffered a cyber attack last month by suspected Russian-based hackers.
It is understood that the firm was targeted by cybercriminals in a malware ransom incident in the middle of July this year.
The hackers are believed to have used a REvil-style malware to infiltrate the company’s systems – it is not known how this was delivered but is likely to have been in an email.
The Company Shows No Transparency
Sources have said that the company immediately contacted authorities, including garda cyber experts who began working with the firm.
It is thought the attack is a criminal effort to hold data to ransom rather than a broader attack on Irish infrastructure.
While the investigation is still ongoing it is not believed that any stolen data has emerged online.
A spokesperson for the company targeted by the attempt told The Journal that they had no comment to make.
The Data Protection Commission confirmed that it received a breach notification on 12 July. It told The Journal The matter is currently being assessed.
Similar Cyber Hack On Other Irish Firms
The attack is reminiscent of the HSE cyber hack in which a suspected Russian-backed criminal group shut down the Irish health service.
Just last week the British National Health Service admitted that they had suffered a software shutdown after a similar assault on 4 August.
In June, the Irish Embassy in Turkey was temporarily unable to process visa applications due to “persistent” cyber attacks.
In February, a major report on the Defence Forces warned that Ireland should strengthen military intelligence and cyber capabilities to counter-espionage threats.
The report recommended an additional 100 cyber defense specialists be recruited to the Defence Forces.
Paul Farrell, who retired as IBM Ireland’s General Manager last year, was a captain in the Irish Defence Forces before joining the international IT firm, warned of the shortfall in Irish cyber de defenses.
