Following a cyber-attack in November, it may cost the Western Isles local authority council £500,000 to restore its IT systems.

Comhairle Nan Eilean Sair experienced a suspected ransomware attack on 7 November 2023, disrupting its IT system and causing its website to go down.

Now, estimated to restore the system show that it may cost half a million pounds to fully resolve its ongoing IT issues.

The disruption impacted services, and causing bills, such as council tax, to be delayed.

“Since the cyber-attack the Comhairle has taken steps to improve the security of systems and safeguard data,” Malcolm Burr, chief executive of the Comhairle said.

“Alongside improved security measures the Comhairle views cyber-security education as a key step that any organisation can take to improve cyber resilience. It was excellent that so many local organisations saw the value in this education and attended today’s sessions.”

The council did say that there is currently no evidence that any data stored on its servers had been published.

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Since the cyber-attack, the work of rebuilding systems has been led by the Comhairle’s Incident Management Team.

Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar did cooperate with Police Scotland, the Cyber and Fraud Centre – Scotland, the National Cyber Security Council and the Scottish government for the criminal investigation after the attack.

Jude McCorry, CEO of Cyber and Fraud Centre- Scotland, said at the time of the attack: “Data breaches can be caused by many factors, and one of the most common causes is cyber attack. This impacts organisations large and small, as well as affecting individuals. If any organisations in Scotland need support to mitigate the impacts of an attack, our free Incident Response helpline is available on 0800 167 0623. ”