ICO Condemns Security Failures After Ransomware Attack on Welsh Government Unit Exposed Children's Data

The ICO criticized security failures by the Welsh local government data unit and an IT service provider following a 2024 ransomware attack that resulted in the theft of children's data. The breach was facilitated by an account secured with the weak password "Password1". The incident involved both the Welsh local government data unit and an IT service provider. The ICO issued condemnation of the security failings that enabled the compromise.