The Labour Party has been impacted by a "cyber incident" affecting the data of its representatives and members. On October 29, Labour stated it was informed by a third-party business that managed membership data on its behalf that they had been impacted by the incident.
The Labour Party is a British political party that has been defined as a coalition of social democrats, democratic socialists, and trade unionists. The Party is located on the political spectrum's center-left.
As a result, "a significant quantity" of party data was "rendered inaccessible on their systems".
The issue is being investigated by the Information Commissioner's Office and the National Cyber Security Centre. Labour wrote in a recent statement that it was collaborating with both the authorities, as well as the National Crime Agency, to figure out what occurred.
The company also stated that it had been "working closely and on an urgent basis with the third party to understand the full nature, circumstances and impact of the incident" but that its data systems remained untouched.
Labour is yet to divulge the identity of the third party, the overall scope of the event, or the sort of data compromised. However, it specifically stated that the issue involved data submitted to the party by "members, registered and affiliated supporters, and other individuals who have provided their information". Notably, the Labour Party's remark is ambiguous and raises many problems for party members.
The NCSC stated that it was aware of the situation and also was supporting Labour. It advised everyone “who thinks they may have been the victim of a data breach to be especially vigilant against suspicious emails, phone calls or text messages.”
The NCA acknowledged that it was conducting the criminal probe and stated that its investigations were in their early stages. “We are working closely with partners to mitigate any potential risk and assess the nature of this incident,” a spokesperson said.
This was not the first time that Labour has been harmed by a cyberattack. Last year, it was revealed that a cybercriminal acquired donor information from a third-party source named Blackbaud between February and May. Names, email addresses, phone numbers, and donation amounts were among the data obtained.
