ICO fines software company £3.09m after cyber-attack

The Information Commissioner’s Office has fined Advanced Software Group Ltd (Advanced) £3.07 million following a cyber-attack in 2022 which put the personal information of nearly 80,000 people at risk. This marks the first fine issued under UK GDPR to a processor.

Advanced, which provides IT and software services to organisations including the NHS, was found to have failed to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect its systems.

In the ransomware attack, hackers managed to access certain systems of Advanced’s health and care subsidiary. This was done via a customer account, which notably did not have Multi Factor Authentication (MFA). The attack caused massive disruption to critical NHS services and healthcare staff were left unable to access patient records. Advanced was found to have insufficient measures in place, including;

■ Gaps in deployment of Multi Factor Authentication
■ A lack of mature vulnerability management scanning mechanisms
■ Inadequate security patch management

A provisional fine of £6.09million was reduced to £3.07million after Advanced’s proactive engagement with the National Cyber Security Centre, the National Crime Agency and the NHS. Advanced has agreed to pay the fine without appeal. You can read the ICO enforcement notice here.

Key learnings from this case

This action serves as a timely reminder for both controller organisations and service providers to make sure robust measures are in place to protect personal data and ensure systems are secure throughout the supply chain.

Supplier due diligence

While this fine has been imposed on a processor, organisations which engage other parties to provide services have a duty to make sure they work with suppliers who can demonstrate robust standards in data protection and information security.

In our experience, controllers need to make sure they’re asking the right questions before they onboard any new supplier who’d be processing personal data on their behalf – whether this be cloud computing providers, SasS solutions or other technology providers. To give a simple illustration;

■ Do they have a DPO or another individual in the business who oversees data protection compliance?
■ Do they have an Information Security Officer, or other related role?
■ Can they provide evidence of data protection and info sec policies and procedures?
■ Have they experienced a data breach before?
■ What information security measures do they have in place?
■ Are security measures regularly test, and how?

Suppliers for their part need to be prepared to meet client’s due diligence requests, including being able to provide detailed information of data location(s) and security measures and controls in place to protect client data.

We’d stress a proportionate risk-based approach should be taken to this, the more sensitive the data the more robust the checks should be.

Seven quick information security tips

1. Restrict access to your data and services and use Multi Factor Authentication where possible
2. Choose secure settings for your network, devices and software
3. Protect yourself from viruses and other malware
4. Keep your devices and software up to date
5. Keep logs and monitor them
6. Restrict or prevent use of USB / memory drives
7. Back up your data

The ICO has published ransomware and compliance guidance which provides information on how to best protect systems.

Controller-processor contracts

Once satisfied with a prospective supplier’s approach to data protection and information security it’s then vital to make sure contractual terms cover core requirements under UK GDPR. Often covered in a Data Processing Agreement/Addendum, these shouldn’t be overlooked. We’ve written about supplier agreements here.

It’s worth noting liability clauses in such agreements are facing increasing scrutiny, reflecting the increased cost of non-compliance and the fall-out from data breaches. Irina Beschieriu, Deals Counsel for Atos IT Solutions has written an interesting article on this for IAPP and says; “General limitations of liability clauses are no longer considered sufficient to address the specific risks associated with data privacy. Instead, we have seen the rise of dedicated provisions meticulously crafted to address data privacy liabilities specifically. Negotiations surrounding these provisions are now more intense, more detailed, and carry higher stakes than ever before.” See: The growing burden of data privacy liability in tech contracts

While ICO fines are not commonplace, we’d urge both controllers and processors to take heed of this action. In announcing this enforcement action Information Commissioner John Edwards says; “With cyber incidents increasing across all sectors, my decision today is a stark reminder that organisations risk becoming the next target without robust security measures in place. I urge all organisations to ensure that every external connection is secured with MFA today to protect the public and their personal information - there is no excuse for leaving any part of your system vulnerable.”