Temporary measures introduced after Glasgow City Council hit by cyber attack

Temporary measures allowing members of the public to access some online Glasgow City Council services have been introduced as the impact of a cyber attack continues almost two weeks after the incident.

The local authority is continuing to take a “cautious approach” when dealing with cyber incident that was reported on June 19.

ICT supplier CGI discovered malicious activity on servers managed by a third-party supplier.

A short-term solution has now been put in place which allows residents to search Property Enquiry Certificates, and a temporary plan to allow interested parties to access the online planning portal has also been established.

It will allow drawings and documents to be viewed and downloaded before any comments are submitted.

Access to all applications, decisions and appeals held on the council’s system are currently unavailable but officers are exploring how to make older files available and will provide a further update on this as soon as possible

Earlier this week access to the Strathclyde Pension Fund portal and the FOI system was restored and the local authority says it will continue to provide a variety of temporary alternatives and workaround until it is safe to return all services.

While there is still no evidence of data loss, independent experts are carrying out forensic analysis of the affected servers.

Until they reach their final conclusion, the council will continue to be cautious and approach the incident with the assumption that data has been compromised.

Glasgow is conducting an investigation into the incident, alongside Police Scotland, the Scottish Cyber Coordination Centre (SC3) and the National Cyber Security Centre.

A spokesperson for the council said: “We are sorry that this incident will have caused real anxiety to people who have used our online services – and frustration for those unable to access those services now.

“As part of our investigation, experts are monitoring online activity and, to date, there has been no evidence of any data being leaked or misused.

“However, until forensic examinations of the affected servers are complete – and we can be confident whether any data has been stolen – we are advising anyone who has used any of the affected forms to be particularly cautious about contact claiming to be from Glasgow City Council.

“If you are contacted by someone claiming to have your data, you should contact Police Scotland on 101.”