Major Cyber Incident Strikes London Local Authorities
Two of London's most prominent local authorities have been forced to activate emergency plans after falling victim to a significant cyber attack. The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) and Westminster City Council, which share key IT infrastructure, confirmed the breach has impacted numerous systems, including public phone lines.
Engineers worked tirelessly through Monday night and into Tuesday after the attack was first detected. As a precautionary measure, both councils have taken several computerised systems offline to prevent further damage while investigations continue.
Critical Services Disrupted for Thousands
The cyber attack affects services for approximately 360,000 residents across the two boroughs. Residents are likely to experience limitations when attempting to check council tax bills or pay parking fines online. The RBKC website is expected to experience intermittent availability throughout Wednesday as security teams implement necessary fixes.
In an official statement, RBKC acknowledged the ongoing nature of the incident: "We don’t have all the answers yet, as the management of this incident is still ongoing. But we know people will have concerns, so we will be updating residents and partners further over the coming days."
Investigation and Response Underway
Both councils are working with specialist cyber incident experts and the government’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC). The primary focus is on protecting systems and data, restoring full functionality, and maintaining critical public services, particularly for the most vulnerable residents.
The authorities have also informed the Information Commissioner’s Office, a standard procedure when a potential data compromise is suspected. At this stage, it remains too early to determine who is behind the attack or their motives.
Westminster City Council apologised for the inconvenience, stating: "We thank residents for being flexible and understanding, people may see some delays in responses and the services we provide over the coming days." The incident has also raised concerns at other London councils, with Hackney council confirming it had received intelligence about multiple London authorities being targeted.
