Wightlink, a UK ferry company, has been struck by a highly complex cyber-attack that may have exposed the personal information of "a small number of customers and staff." Wightlink stated, the incident, which occurred in February, reportedly impacted certain back-office IT systems but not its ferry services, booking system, and website.

According to the company, law enforcement and the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) have been contacted, since they have possible breach victims. Wightlink has three routes between Hampshire in southeast England and the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast. The company claims to carry 4.6 million passengers each year on over 100 daily sailings.

Wightlink claimed in a statement received by The Daily Swig: “Unfortunately, despite Wightlink taking appropriate security measures, some of its back-office IT systems were affected by a cyber-attack last month. However, this criminal action has not affected Wightlink’s ferries and FastCats, which have continued to operate normally during and following the attack, nor were its booking system and website affected.” 

Wightlink said it hired third-party cybersecurity experts to analyse and analyse the situation as soon as it was detected. The operator stated it was working with the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit in addition to reporting the incident to the ICO. 

The company stated, “Wightlink does not process or store payment card details for bookings. However, the investigation has identified a small number of customers and staff for whom other items of personal information may have been compromised during the incident. 

Wightlink chief executive Keith Greenfield stated, “I would like to thank all my colleagues at Wightlink who responded quickly ensuring that the impact to customers was minimised and that cross-Solent travel and bookings were unaffected.”