Parliamentary officials warned of cyberthreat from Extinction Rebellion
Civil servants working on select committees were given security advice in expectation of possible attack
Extinction Rebellion protestors in London on Friday Credit: Victoria Jones/PA Wire/PA Images
Ahead of the bank-holiday weekend, civil servants working on parliamentary select committees were warned of the threat of a possible cyberattack being launched by environmental activists Extinction Rebellion.
Acting on advice from cyber specialists at the Parliamentary Digital Service, late last week the House of Commons Chamber and Committees team emailed officials that manage a select committee social media account. They were warned that, as part of planned weekend of protest and action over the weekend, Extinction Rebellion might undertake cyberattacks on online accounts representing government.
“We have been informed by the PDS cybersecurity team that parliamentary accounts could possibly be targeted over the bank holiday weekend,” said the email, which was published by the Guido Fawkes blog.
Related content
- House of Commons seeks cybersecurity chief
- MPs working from home sent cyber advice mouse mats to remind them of potential password problems
- Parliament plans two-year programme to boost ‘cyber capability’
Officials were warned that part of the activist group’s plans for the weekend involve a desire to “explicitly target government social-media accounts, email address and phone lines with the intention of ‘shutting them down online’”.
The email reminded recipients of the need to “set strong passwords”, and instructed them to update account passwords if they had not been changed following the departure of a former employee.
“Check who is able to publish on social media accounts if several team members have access,” the email added.
If they notice “any suspicious activity” on social accounts, officials are advised to change the relevant password and then inform the team that manages “online services” for select committees. If an account is known to have been breached, civil servants must alert a media officer and a “senior content producer” from the online services unit.
As of the morning of Tuesday 1 September, no such breaches – or unsuccessful attacks – have been reported publicly.
Share this page
Tags
Categories
CONTRIBUTIONS FROM READERS
Please login to post a comment or register for a free account.
Related Articles
Minister says input will be welcomed from all stakeholders
PublicTechnology completes our round-up of the most read and significant stories of 2020
MPs, unions and academics call for rules on the use of tech that can monitor remote workers
Boris Johnson claims extra funding represents ‘biggest investment since Cold War’
Related Sponsored Articles
In 2020 public sector organisations have been tested to a degree never experienced before. According to CrowdStrike, increasing cybersecurity attacks are an additional complication they must...