By Sophie Tanno, NCS
London (NCS) — Data together with images, addresses and the names of more than 8,000 children has been stolen by cyber hackers concentrating on a nursery chain in the United Kingdom, British information retailers have reported.
The hackers revealed a few of the stolen images and profiles from the Kido nursery group on the darkish net, Britain’s PA Media information company reported, citing the BBC, and are demanding ransom cash from the corporate.
A spokesperson from London’s Metropolitan Police instructed NCS, “Met Police received a referral on Thursday, 25 September following reports of a ransomware attack on a London-based organisation.”
Enquiries are ongoing and stay in the preliminary phases throughout the police pressure’s Cyber Crime Unit, the spokesperson added. No arrests have been made.
Bryony Wilde, whose little one attends a Kido nursery in London, stated the children are “completely innocent victims.”
“They are kids – their personal details shouldn’t be worth anything,” she stated. “You are probably prepared to go a little bit further to protect children’s privacy and personal details,” Wilde instructed the BBC.
The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), the UK’s technical authority for cyber safety, described the reported incident as “deeply distressing.”
“The reports of highly sensitive data being stolen in a cyber incident impacting nurseries are deeply distressing,” Jonathon Ellison, NCSC director for nationwide resilience, stated.
“Cyber criminals will target anyone if they think there is money to be made, and going after those who look after children is a particularly egregious act.”
He added that the NCSC supplies bespoke steering to assist early years settings, corresponding to nurseries, defend themselves from assaults.
“When hackers go after hospitals, schools, or in this case nurseries, it feels like the lowest of the low,” Mantas Sabeckis, an infosecurity researcher at impartial media outlet Cybernews stated. Cybernews describes itself as utilizing moral hacking methods to reveal cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities.
He added that the kind of knowledge reportedly stolen in this incident “could enable stalking, harassment, or even targeting families who might already be vulnerable.”
NCS has reached out to the Kido nursery chain for remark.
On its web site, Kido says it’s owned and operated by a bunch of oldsters from all around the world. “We now have schools around the globe, which bring together the world’s best early years practices to deliver the finest preschool experience for children and parents alike,” it says.
The-NCS-Wire
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