You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles
Council planning department working on ‘manual workaround’ after cyber attack
Gloucester City Council’s planning department has been forced to undertake manual workarounds to ensure that old planning applications can still be accessed, after its IT systems were breached as part of a cyber attack by hackers thought to be based in Russia.
Gloucester City Council is still experiencing issues with its IT systems after a cyber attack affected its planning department in December #UKhousingThe local authority said that while new applications could be received and commented on, it was “working hard on manual workarounds” for applications already submitted.
The council discovered that its systems had been breached in December in an attack that affected its online revenue and benefits, planning and customer services.
Inside Housing learned of the attack after submitting a Freedom of Information (FOI) request that asked for information regarding the resources and capacity of the council’s planning department over a five-year period.
However, in response to the FOI request, the council said: “Unfortunately, we cannot currently provide the figures for the whole time period as we cannot access our systems due to a cyber incident.”
Read more
Gloucester was asked if any planning applications had been lost or delayed, and whether any of these belonged to housing associations, but the council said it could not provide any more information other than what it had released in an earlier statement.
It added that this was because it was “working closely with the National Cyber Security Centre and the National Crime Agency to understand more about the nature of this incident”.
Council sources, who spoke to the BBC but did not wish to be named, allege that the cyber attack was carried out by hackers from Russia.
The planning page on the council’s website still carries the message: “Our planning application website is currently unavailable and it is not possible to view planning application details or to submit comments through the online portal.”
It appears that a new page has been set up where people can view applications submitted this year, but those submitted in 2021 or historic applications are not available to view.
In a budget agenda, published last week, council leaders set aside a cyber recovery reserve of £380,000 to help restore its IT system after the attack.
David Norman, cabinet member for performance and resources, provided an update for the council.
He said: “New planning applications can be received, residents can comment on these applications and the planning team are working hard on manual workarounds for applications already submitted.”
The council could not say how long these “workarounds” would be in place.
In its original statement following the attack, the council said its focus was on managing any urgent customer issues as it continued to work with the national agencies and its IT partners to bring its systems back online as quickly as possible.
It added: “As the situation is still being investigated it is unfortunately not possible to give a current timeframe for when we’re able resolve the issues and we are unable to share any further details as it is an active investigation.
“You can still access advice and information via our website including emergency numbers if you need to contact us. We are taking the situation extremely seriously and thank residents for their co-operation and understanding.”
Sign up for our Council Focus newsletter
Already have an account? Click here to manage your newsletters
Related stories
