French Connection UK experiences ransomware attack leading to data breach
French Connection UK, also known as FCUK, have recently been hit by a ransomware attack, leading to a significant breach of private internal data.
The attackers responsible, believed to be affiliated with the notorious REvil hacker group, are said to have exploited a security vulnerability in the company’s back-end systems. From here, they were able to steal internal company data before demanding a ransom to return it.
To prove the legitimacy of the attack, the gang have used passport and ID scans of a number of high-profile French Connection staff members, including founder and chief executive Stephen Marks, chief financial officer Lee Williams and chief operating officer Neil Williams.
It is not clear exactly what type of data has been breached. French Connection claim that the breach does not relate to any of its customers, but no such assurances have been made for current and former employees, whose data may well have been stored on the internal servers which were breached.
In a statement on the matter, French Connection said: "As soon as it became aware of the breach, the company took immediate action, suspending all affected systems and engaging third-party experts to assist with resolving the situation.
"The company is now actively working to restore its systems as quickly and safely as possible and where necessary is using manual overrides in order to ensure that the company can continue to operate."
French Connection have refused to say whether they have received a ransom to retrieve the data and, if so, how much it may have been asked to pay in order to keep the data secure and away from the black market.
It has been confirmed that the data breach has been reported to the relevant authorities, including the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
If you have been contacted by French Connection to inform you that your data has been exposed in the breach, or you have strong reason to believe that this is the case, then you will likely have grounds to claim compensation.
The team at Hayes Connor are ready to advise and support anyone who has been affected by the French Connection data breach. To find out more about how you can make a claim, please get in touch.
What to do if you are concerned about the French Connection data breach
If your data was exposed in the French Connection data breach, the company should have already been in contact with you to inform you that this is the case. However, if you have not been contacted and you believe that you have been affected, then you should contact French Connection as soon as possible to voice your concerns.
You should be extremely vigilant of any unexpected communications, such as emails or text messages, particularly if they appear to be from someone who is claiming to represent French Connection. There is a chance that these could be ‘phishing attacks’ which are designed to extract further information from you.
There are various ways you can reduce the risk of cybercriminals using your personal data against you. For more, please read our helpful guide on what to do if your data has been stolen in a data breach.
If your data was indeed compromised in the French Connection data breach, you may be in a position to claim compensation. This is something the team at Hayes Connor can help you with.
How Hayes Connor can help you claim compensation for the French Connection data breach
Any organisation which stores personal data is legally obliged to keep it secure and out of the hands of cybercriminals and unauthorised third parties. This means that, if said data is exposed, anyone affected may be in a position to make a compensation claim.
Hayes Connor has one of the largest teams of dedicated teams of data breach specialists in the country and have a wealth of combined expertise when it comes to handling claims. We can help to guide you through all the steps you need to make to bring forward a claim if your data has been exposed.
We can discuss your personal situation in detail and help to assess whether you are owed compensation, how much you could be entitled to and how the general claims process works. We understand how stressful and worrying it can be to lose your personal data, which is why we also make sure to provide you with close personal support during the claims process, as well as making sure everything is kept as straightforward as possible.
You can find out more about our expertise and how we handle data breach claims here.
To start a claim, you can use our online claim form.
To speak to a member of our team about the French Connection data breach, please do not hesitate to give us a call on 0330 041 5132.