Every police force across England and Wales has been forced to prioritize evidence for forensic testing following a criminal cyber attack affecting one of the primary forensic service providers to UK policing.
The National Police Chief's Council (NPCC) has temporarily suspended all law enforcement submissions to the labs, following a ransomware attack which has caused disruption to many of its IT systems in several countries.
The NPCC said it is working alongside partners in the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) to safeguard UK policing and the criminal justice system from the impact of the attack.
It said it is too early to "fully quantify the impact".
The National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Forensics, Chief Constable James Vaughan, said: “As a result of the ransomware attack, we have temporarily suspended all law enforcement submissions to their forensic science subsidiary.
“Our priority - alongside the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners - is to minimise the impact on the criminal justice system. Full story at the Yorkshire Post: https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/crime/uk-s-forensic-system-hit-by-criminal-cyber-attack-1-9835919
UPDATE July 7, Sunday Times: "The biggest supplier of forensic analysis services to the police and security services has paid hundreds of thousands of pounds to cyber-criminals to regain access to computer systems."
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