As part of an alarming incident that highlights the growing threat of cyberattacks on public sector systems, the Vegetable Marketing Organisation (VMO) reported that it was targeted by a ransomware attack that disrupted the Cheung Sha Wan Vegetable Wholesale Market’s operations through a ransomware attack on a segment of its computer infrastructure.
Upon discovering the breach on October 13, immediate suspension of network service was imposed as a precautionary measure to contain the intrusion and safeguard critical data.
VMO announced on Wednesday that the affected servers were quickly isolated from external access and alerted the Hong Kong Police, the Hong Kong Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Centre, and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data to the incident.
A preliminary study suggests that the attack had a significant effect on the gate and accounting systems of the market, potentially exposing the personal information of approximately 7,000 registered users to the outside world.
Founded in 1946 to ensure that local produce will be available continuously, the VMO, a non-profit organisation established to ensure this, has begun a comprehensive investigation into the extent of the data breach to determine whether any personal information has been compromised, and it has promised to inform individuals if any personal information is found to be at risk.
This article has been indexed from CySecurity News – Latest Information Security and Hacking Incidents
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