Law firm suffers data breach in targeted cyberattack

Gateley PLC has disclosed that it has been a victim of a cyberattack resulting in a breach of client data.

Law firm Gateley PLC has revealed that it has been targeted by a cyberattack resulting in some of its client data being compromised. This data breach makes the firm the latest casualty within the legal industry. Law firms are seen as attractive targets by hackers and cyber criminals due to the sensitive client data they hold. Following best practice, Gateley said it has already notified the relevant regulators and law enforcement agencies, as well as the Information Commissioner’s Office.

In a statement to the stock exchange, the listed firm said it is “confident that the incident has been confined to a very small part of its data store, amounting to approximately 0.2% of the company’s data, and that when the company’s investigations are further progressed, those clients that have been affected will be notified.”

The firm added: “The intrusion was quickly identified by the company’s IT team, and it acted immediately to secure the company’s systems”.

Based on the information gathered to date, the company is confident that its security controls were effective in limiting the impact of the incident. “The company took some of its systems offline while it undertook necessary extensive investigations into the incident, supported by a professional cyber security support team mobilised as part of its cyber security insurance facility. The company has carefully but rapidly re-established its core systems to enable its staff to continue to work and communicate with its clients.”

“The board has seen no evidence that the financial performance of the company has been impaired.”

Rod Waldie, chief executive of Gateley, said:

“IT security is of paramount importance to Gateley and we had carefully planned for the occurrence of risk that a cyber breach could have on the business. Incidents of this nature are, sadly, prevalent. I am grateful that the prompt actions of our IT team have limited the impact of this incident and enabled us to resume our business operations swiftly.

“We are continuing to work with specialist cyber security professionals to investigate the incident and identify any parties that may have been affected and we will, of course, contact anyone affected in due course.

“In the meantime, we are restoring all of our systems in a safe and secure manner as quickly as possible and do not expect at this stage any significant disruption to our day-to-day activities or financial performance.”

Cyber-attacks against law firms are increasing. Is your firm secure?

CYFOR has previously spoken of the fact that cyber-attacks against law firms are increasing and the risks associated with a law firm data breach. As Cyber Security and Digital Forensic experts we count numerous law firms as clients, and as such, fully understand the challenges and security threats they face. Get in touch with our consultants if you have concerns about the current IT Security posture of your firm, or if you would like to enquire about our range of Cyber Security services.