Sir John Redwood (Wokingham) (Con):
Is there any indication of how the thief wanted to use the data, if they have actually got it? Have all the staff been advised to change accounts, passwords and internet access in every way, so that no further harm can occur?
Grant Shapps (Secretary of State for Defence):
In answer to the first point, no, there is no indication. On the second point, our regular approachāI speak as someone with an MOD accountāis that passwords have to be changed regularly in order to continue to use the system, so those security measures are in place. People do not need to change their bank accounts as a result of this incident. Apart from anything else, using someoneās bank details to make a payment somewhere else would be technically difficult, as a new account would need two-factor authentication, so it is not necessary for people to change their accounts. The monitoring service will provide an overlay of additional reassurance to them.
May 11, 2024
Just knowing the names and pay levels would be enough for an enemy to identify who does what.
May 11, 2024
I just love JRās question (āThe thiefā lol) and the eager beaver style reply.
Much entrails consulting had been going on and, after all, every self respecting NZ country MUST have its share of much predicted ā cyber attacksā.
May 11, 2024
āAttackā is probably not overstated, yet the purpose seems unlikely to be linked with extracting money from personal bank accounts. There are easier ways to perform monetary fraud without the risk of triggering such intense reaction from a government. The intent was probably mainly to probe and find out matters which our government needs to keep secret, or demonstrate how simple it is to bypass confidential precautions.
May 11, 2024
DELL sent an email to all their customers this week, telling them that the customers data had been stolen, as part of a hack of the DELL customer database.
Easy way to get a VIP’s home address etc.
Not to mention the home addresses of key people in our society, like the 200 fast jet pilots we have on which the whole defence of the realm depends. 200 that’s all we have, such a small number. And so on.
May 11, 2024
Protecting data is very hard you have corrupted staff, software bugs, maintenance engineersā¦ all sorts of weaknesses and you can store masses of data on a tiny chip or download masses in a few seconds.
Meanwhile I read that āPlanet Earth is getting rocked by the biggest solar storm in decades.ā giving us spectacular Northern Lights even in Cornwall it seems. I assume the climate āexpertsā predicted this solar activity and had it figured in with their brilliant computer models? Just as they have all the volcanic eruptions in the models?
Or are these people just bent crystal ball soothsayers? Can they perhaps predict net monthās or next years climate remotely accurately?
May 11, 2024
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Tut! Tut LL!
Keep up!
They use bunches of seaweed ā¦placed scientifically outside the back door.
May 11, 2024
I know and I am not a āclimate scientistā merely a maths/physicist/electronics person so what right do I have to comment?
They actually seem to use thermometers in heavily build up areas like say Heathrow & then compare the average temperature now with when it merely a grass strip runway.
May 11, 2024
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Strategically placed no doubt?
Good job ppl like you do comment!
May 11, 2024
Security is a spectrum, poor security is cheap, great security is expensive. Few organisations are prepared to pay for the best most expensive security. Getting the balance correct is the skill.
The MOD is useless at security, lots of petty bureaucracy, lots of retired military helicopter pilots in security roles who have no idea of the basics of computer science, lots of money spent, pretty rubbish security in practice.
Their HR systems are botched versions of oracle HR systems but so heavily customised they may as well be bespoke. They are supposed to be replacing them but they are incapable of procuring anything decent.
May 11, 2024
Hearing ministers talk about a subject I understand well gives me a concern they are equally ignorant on subjects I know little about, like the economy, foreign policy, food and energy security.
The secretary gives every indication that loosing this data is not a problem.
Identity theft is a very big problem. One hypothetical scenario would be if the military were deployed, the opposite forces could use the data to conduct fraud on service personnel, the MoD and their families. So while troops are deployed, their families are having houses repossessed, chased for repayments for fraudulent loans, bank accounts closed due to perceived illegal activity and other issues, sapping the will and moral of the nation.
How hypothetical is this? Google ācost of identity theft 2024ā to find out.
āThere is no indication what the thieves wanted to do with the dataā is a terrifyingly stupid, ignorant answer. Identity theft is used for financial fraud. The actual answer is all those impacted are going to have a lifetime of fraud attempts on their financial provisions, fake loans taken out in their names, fraud alerts blocking legitimate transactions, fraudulent transactions in their bank accounts, loans and mortgages refused because of bad credit records due to ongoing fraud etc etc.
One year of āfreeā credit monitoring for those impacted is a joke. It should be a lifetime, and the company that lost the data should pay for it.
May 11, 2024
Oh how much easier and safer it is when machines do all the work!
Mind you..I suppose eventually there will be no need for payrolls as such.
No workers!
May 11, 2024
It’s the people , not the technology.Everwhere is filling up with those who have a different set of morals and sensitivities. It saddens me that free speech has turned to power kicks and nastiness.I. Have just come back from the supermarket and the general conversations were about slagging others off and pushing and shoving.These are the ones who don’t look in the mirror for their own faults , lie and cheat and access technology.
May 11, 2024
In other news
Today the BBC reporting ābreaking newsā that itās the hottest day so far this year ā¦.Iām expecting further ābreaking newsā tomorrow as it gets hotter towards mid-summer ā¦donāt we have a media select committee, couldnāt someone ask why this is breaking news