TalkTalk cyber attack: IoD calls cybercrime “one of biggest threats facing businesses”
The Institute of Directors (IoD) has called cybercrime one of the “biggest threats facing businesses”, and urged companies to work with the government to tackle it.
Oliver Parry, a senior corporate governance adviser at the IoD, told the BBC cyber attacks “happen constantly” at UK companies.
"The risks need to reviewed regularly by the board of directors, who must ensure they know where the potential threats are coming from and are prepared in case the worst happens,” he said.
The UK is a world leader in the digital economy, so we urge the government and companies to work together to make us the world leader in countering the scourge of cyber crime.
He also said that in the event of data being stolen, police should investigate it “just as it would theft of physical property”.
Earlier this week, telecoms giant TalkTalk has hit by a major attack, in which the personal details of as many as four million customers were stolen by the hackers.
Read more: What to do if you're a customer and you're worried about personal data being hacked
Information accessed included credit card details, names and dates of birth. The company is currently unsure of how much of the information is encrypted, and an investigation is underway by the company and by the police.
Yesterday, TalkTalk chief executive of Dido Harding said a group claiming to be behind the attack emailed her demanding a ransom. Police are currently looking into the email.