Cyber-attack hits accounting giant Deloitte with clients’ details, passwords and emails stolen

A CYBER attack has reportedly hit accounting giant Deloitte with hackers alleged to have stolen the passwords, emails and personal details of clients.

The firm - one of the world's 'big four' accountancy firms - was targeted by a sophisticated hack that went unnoticed for months, The Guardian reports.

According to the newspaper, the attack breached the company email system and allowed the hackers "access to all areas".

Deloitte - one of the big four professional services providers - confirmed to the newspaper it had been hit by a hack, but it said only a small number of its clients had been impacted.

The firm discovered the hack in March, according to the Guardian, but the cyber attackers could have had breached its systems as long ago as October or November 2016.
The attack was believed to have been focused on the U.S operations of the company, which provides auditing, tax advice and consultancy to multinationals and governments worldwide.

The attack was believed to have been focused on the U.S operations of the company, which provides auditing, tax advice and consultancy to multinationals and governments worldwide.

Deloitte has already launched an investigation and contacted the people who were affected.

“In response to a cyber incident, Deloitte implemented its comprehensive security protocol and began an intensive and thorough review including mobilising a team of cybersecurity and confidentiality experts inside and outside of Deloitte,” a spokesman told The Guardian.

“As part of the review, Deloitte has been in contact with the very few clients impacted and notified governmental authorities and regulators.

“The review has enabled us to understand what information was at risk and what the hacker actually did, and demonstrated that no disruption has occurred to client businesses, to Deloitte’s ability to continue to serve clients, or to consumers.

“We remain deeply committed to ensuring that our cybersecurity defences are best in class, to investing heavily in protecting confidential information and to continually reviewing and enhancing cybersecurity.

"We will continue to evaluate this matter and take additional steps as required."

There have been several high-profile cyber attacks this year.

More than 200,000 victims across 150 countries were infected by malicious software known as WannaCry in May.

WORLD WAR WEB How cyber attacks can crash economies, destroy governments and bring society to its knees

The NHS was one of the worst affected victims of the international cyber attack

Around 40 NHS trusts were hit in the WannaCry ransomware attack, forcing them to postpone operations and procedures.

Seven hospitals remained on A&E divert two days later, with ambulances taking emergency patients elsewhere, NHS England said.

The full scale of the attack on the NHS only become apparent four days later as people returned to work.