Headlines January
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It takes 2.5 years to rebuild the Court of Twente ICT after a hack
Hof van Twente is taking two and a half years to rebuild the ICT infrastructure after a ransomware attack in early December. The Overijssel municipality emphasizes that normal services are running again, although a lot is still done manually as a result of the hack.
At the beginning of December, the Hof van Twente had to endure a heavy attack with ransomware, in which attackers took over all data on servers. 'We have a full shop window, but the shop behind it is still empty', mayor Ellen Nauta tells her citizens on the Hof van Twente site. She indicates that the municipality focuses on supporting vulnerable residents and reducing service provision. 'All this is ongoing, but not yet in final form. We still do a lot manually. For example, the issue of a passport. That went according to a certain routine. Many more actions are now required for this.' Nauta emphasizes that rebuilding the ICT infrastructure is not easy. For example, the construction of the basic infrastructure takes at least six months and the municipality then allocates two more years to fill in the correct information and data 'behind the scenes'. She also indicates that security is now optimal and that this was a priority after the hack. The mayor emphasizes that no civilian data has been leaked.
Municipality does not pay ransom
Hof van Twente does not respond to the claim of hostage hackers
An independent investigation has been launched to investigate how the hack could have taken place. The results of this may be released at the end of February. In addition, a criminal investigation is ongoing at the Public Prosecution Service. If steps can be reported about this, the police will do so. Nauta is not yet able to estimate the costs of the hack. 'We make expenditures from the regular budgets. We submit larger expenses to the council.' Incidentally, the municipality was not insured against hacks. Hof van Twente wants to investigate in the coming period what is the position of liability for the situation that has arisen. Nauta underlines that no ransom has been paid. 'The municipality has chosen not to accept the ransom demand that reached us via the Volkskrant and we have therefore not paid a ransom. We believe on principle that you should not do business with criminal organizations and we follow the line of the national government.'
Source: https://www.computable.nl/artikel/nieuws/overheid/7126602/250449/hof-van-twente-doet-25-jaar-over-opbouw-ict-na-hack.html?utm_source=computable.nl&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dagelijkse_update&utm_content=topartikelen
Schools are struggling with disruptions when starting online lessons
Various apps that schools use to organize online education are experiencing malfunctions. This is also the case with the Parro app that is used by a large proportion of the 6000 primary schools to communicate with parents. ICT manager Bob Reijnders of Parro: "You have to imagine, the whole of the Netherlands is currently following online education and tried to log in this morning, the system went out at nine. The biggest problems have now been solved." Another system, Zulu Connect, where the digital teaching material for children is located, was also canceled this morning. It is now back in the air. Spokesperson Prince Heyliger: "We had technical problems for an hour this morning, causing it to freeze. Everyone tried to log in at the same time, a huge hause. We have now arranged extra capacity and we assume that from now on things will go well."
Source: www.nos.nl
Hof van Twente is taking two and a half years to rebuild the ICT infrastructure after a ransomware attack in early December. The Overijssel municipality emphasizes that normal services are running again, although a lot is still done manually as a result of the hack.
At the beginning of December, the Hof van Twente had to endure a heavy attack with ransomware, in which attackers took over all data on servers. 'We have a full shop window, but the shop behind it is still empty', mayor Ellen Nauta tells her citizens on the Hof van Twente site. She indicates that the municipality focuses on supporting vulnerable residents and reducing service provision. 'All this is ongoing, but not yet in final form. We still do a lot manually. For example, the issue of a passport. That went according to a certain routine. Many more actions are now required for this.' Nauta emphasizes that rebuilding the ICT infrastructure is not easy. For example, the construction of the basic infrastructure takes at least six months and the municipality then allocates two more years to fill in the correct information and data 'behind the scenes'. She also indicates that security is now optimal and that this was a priority after the hack. The mayor emphasizes that no civilian data has been leaked.
Municipality does not pay ransom
Hof van Twente does not respond to the claim of hostage hackers
An independent investigation has been launched to investigate how the hack could have taken place. The results of this may be released at the end of February. In addition, a criminal investigation is ongoing at the Public Prosecution Service. If steps can be reported about this, the police will do so. Nauta is not yet able to estimate the costs of the hack. 'We make expenditures from the regular budgets. We submit larger expenses to the council.' Incidentally, the municipality was not insured against hacks. Hof van Twente wants to investigate in the coming period what is the position of liability for the situation that has arisen. Nauta underlines that no ransom has been paid. 'The municipality has chosen not to accept the ransom demand that reached us via the Volkskrant and we have therefore not paid a ransom. We believe on principle that you should not do business with criminal organizations and we follow the line of the national government.'
Source: https://www.computable.nl/artikel/nieuws/overheid/7126602/250449/hof-van-twente-doet-25-jaar-over-opbouw-ict-na-hack.html?utm_source=computable.nl&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=dagelijkse_update&utm_content=topartikelen
Schools are struggling with disruptions when starting online lessons
Various apps that schools use to organize online education are experiencing malfunctions. This is also the case with the Parro app that is used by a large proportion of the 6000 primary schools to communicate with parents. ICT manager Bob Reijnders of Parro: "You have to imagine, the whole of the Netherlands is currently following online education and tried to log in this morning, the system went out at nine. The biggest problems have now been solved." Another system, Zulu Connect, where the digital teaching material for children is located, was also canceled this morning. It is now back in the air. Spokesperson Prince Heyliger: "We had technical problems for an hour this morning, causing it to freeze. Everyone tried to log in at the same time, a huge hause. We have now arranged extra capacity and we assume that from now on things will go well."
Source: www.nos.nl
Record fine for company that sells e-cigarettes from Heinenoord
The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) has fined a company that sells electronic cigarettes from Heinenoord of 450 thousand euros. This is evident from a ruling by the Rotterdam Preliminary Relief Judge at the end of December.
The company was fined for violating advertising rules for the fourth time in five years. The first sentence was imposed by the NVWA in 2018. According to a spokesman, it is the highest fine ever handed out by the authority. In the judgment, the judge calls the company 'a persistent repeat offender'. After the fine, the company went to court to have the sanction suspended. According to the lawyers, the fine may well be the final blow for the company, but according to the NVWA the company has enough money. Shareholders' equity amounts to seven thousand euros and a dividend of five hundred thousand euros has recently been paid to shareholders.
The lawyers of the firm from Hoeksche Waard are considering appealing to the Council of State. According to lawyers Jasper Hagers and Lisa Jie Sam Foek, the court indicated that it was busy and there was no hearing. In addition, the company did not receive a defense from the Dutch State and was not allowed to respond to the additional, new documents from the State.
Source: https://www.rijnmond.nl/nieuws/202750/Recordboete-voor-bedrijf-dat-e-sigaretten-vanuit-Heinenoord-verkoopt
The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) has fined a company that sells electronic cigarettes from Heinenoord of 450 thousand euros. This is evident from a ruling by the Rotterdam Preliminary Relief Judge at the end of December.
The company was fined for violating advertising rules for the fourth time in five years. The first sentence was imposed by the NVWA in 2018. According to a spokesman, it is the highest fine ever handed out by the authority. In the judgment, the judge calls the company 'a persistent repeat offender'. After the fine, the company went to court to have the sanction suspended. According to the lawyers, the fine may well be the final blow for the company, but according to the NVWA the company has enough money. Shareholders' equity amounts to seven thousand euros and a dividend of five hundred thousand euros has recently been paid to shareholders.
The lawyers of the firm from Hoeksche Waard are considering appealing to the Council of State. According to lawyers Jasper Hagers and Lisa Jie Sam Foek, the court indicated that it was busy and there was no hearing. In addition, the company did not receive a defense from the Dutch State and was not allowed to respond to the additional, new documents from the State.
Source: https://www.rijnmond.nl/nieuws/202750/Recordboete-voor-bedrijf-dat-e-sigaretten-vanuit-Heinenoord-verkoopt
Hackers put private data of employees of Dordrecht School online
Hackers posted confidential information of employees of the Stedelijk Dalton Lyceum on Instagram this weekend. That confirms the police.
Confidential emails and data were shared on newly created Instagram pages under the name of the school. For example, there was an email about a lawsuit against an employee who was fired for neglect of duty. An approved pension application was also online, as was private data of employees such as a BSN number.
'Very annoying'
The page has been on the air all weekend. The school says that the hackers could strike because an employee clicked on a link in a phishing email."This is very annoying", Marlies van der Krogt of the school's Executive Board told RTV Dordrecht . "All leaked information originates from email traffic. We have again urged everyone to beware of such phishing emails." Van der Krogt says she does not know who is responsible for the hack. According to the police, the investigation is still ongoing.
Pay attention
According to Van der Krogt, the school will not change the internal systems. "We just have to be very careful with confidential information about the mail." The police have not arrested anyone yet, Rijnmond reports
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2363327-hackers-zetten-privegegevens-van-medewerkers-dordtse-school-online.htm
Hackers posted confidential information of employees of the Stedelijk Dalton Lyceum on Instagram this weekend. That confirms the police.
Confidential emails and data were shared on newly created Instagram pages under the name of the school. For example, there was an email about a lawsuit against an employee who was fired for neglect of duty. An approved pension application was also online, as was private data of employees such as a BSN number.
'Very annoying'
The page has been on the air all weekend. The school says that the hackers could strike because an employee clicked on a link in a phishing email."This is very annoying", Marlies van der Krogt of the school's Executive Board told RTV Dordrecht . "All leaked information originates from email traffic. We have again urged everyone to beware of such phishing emails." Van der Krogt says she does not know who is responsible for the hack. According to the police, the investigation is still ongoing.
Pay attention
According to Van der Krogt, the school will not change the internal systems. "We just have to be very careful with confidential information about the mail." The police have not arrested anyone yet, Rijnmond reports
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2363327-hackers-zetten-privegegevens-van-medewerkers-dordtse-school-online.htm
Dozens of companies have been hit by an ICT attack on Accent Automatisering Sneek
Dozens of customers of automation company Accent in Sneek within and outside Friesland are the victims of an ICT attack on this company. They cannot access their office files in a normal way.
On Saturday morning, the Sneker IT specialist discovered that it was wrong. “There was unusual activity. For example, certain processes were repeatedly repeated, '' says commercial director Wim Behage. To prevent more misery, the company shut down the ICT system. "We went into lockdown, just to say it like that." The result was that customers could no longer access their own digital work environment. For example, installation company Damstra in Driezum was no longer able to plan, explains Behage.
Backups
Because, according to him, good backups have been made before, all files are still available. According to Behage, no data has been leaked out. The incident was reported to the Dutch Data Protection Authority.
'Improper activities' have been reported to the police. Whether the automation company Accent, which employs 50 people, is a victim of ransomware, remains to be seen, according to Behage. “We have it under investigation. It's too early to say what exactly is going on.''
Source: https://www.lc.nl/economie/Tientallen-bedrijven-geraakt-door-ict-aanval-op-Accent-Automatisering-Sneek-26348320.html
Dozens of customers of automation company Accent in Sneek within and outside Friesland are the victims of an ICT attack on this company. They cannot access their office files in a normal way.
On Saturday morning, the Sneker IT specialist discovered that it was wrong. “There was unusual activity. For example, certain processes were repeatedly repeated, '' says commercial director Wim Behage. To prevent more misery, the company shut down the ICT system. "We went into lockdown, just to say it like that." The result was that customers could no longer access their own digital work environment. For example, installation company Damstra in Driezum was no longer able to plan, explains Behage.
Backups
Because, according to him, good backups have been made before, all files are still available. According to Behage, no data has been leaked out. The incident was reported to the Dutch Data Protection Authority.
'Improper activities' have been reported to the police. Whether the automation company Accent, which employs 50 people, is a victim of ransomware, remains to be seen, according to Behage. “We have it under investigation. It's too early to say what exactly is going on.''
Source: https://www.lc.nl/economie/Tientallen-bedrijven-geraakt-door-ict-aanval-op-Accent-Automatisering-Sneek-26348320.html
E-bike factory in Cuijk destroyed by fire after car drove into it
The E-Bike Development Center at the Kovel in Cuijk was destroyed by fire on Saturday night. The fire broke out around a quarter past four. The flames exploded from the roof. At around ten o'clock in the morning the signal was given fire master. The police say that a car entered the building around a quarter past four. "It is being investigated whether there is arson." The owner of the company stated that he was not allowed to say anything about the fire because of the police investigation. Asked if entering the car could be an accident, he replied sarcastically, "In theory it could, but it would have been a very stupid driver." The building is now secured by a security service. The fire brigade began demolishing parts of the building on Sunday morning. Loose parts have been removed so that they do not pose a hazard. The fire broke out in a hall of the building. The Development Center office has remained 'reasonably damage-free'. "Because the dividing wall in the company has done its job well." The E-Bike Development Center produces components for electric bicycles. According to officer on duty Frank van Berkel of the fire service, however, the batteries were not endangered. The smoke released would therefore not have been 'extra dangerous'.
Research
The site has been cordoned off by the municipality. Corps from Cuijk, Oeffelt, Wanroij, Haps, Grave, Zeeland and Uden were called up to fight the fire. Among other things, a cherry picker and a ladder truck were used. The Cuijk fire station is literally around the corner. Extinguishing was done with water from a ditch, among other things. The fire could not spread because there are no other companies near the E-Bike Development Center.
Source: https://www.omroepbrabant.nl/nieuws/3327474/grote-brand-bij-e-bikebedrijf-lijkt-aanslag-zegt-burgemeester-van-cuijk
The E-Bike Development Center at the Kovel in Cuijk was destroyed by fire on Saturday night. The fire broke out around a quarter past four. The flames exploded from the roof. At around ten o'clock in the morning the signal was given fire master. The police say that a car entered the building around a quarter past four. "It is being investigated whether there is arson." The owner of the company stated that he was not allowed to say anything about the fire because of the police investigation. Asked if entering the car could be an accident, he replied sarcastically, "In theory it could, but it would have been a very stupid driver." The building is now secured by a security service. The fire brigade began demolishing parts of the building on Sunday morning. Loose parts have been removed so that they do not pose a hazard. The fire broke out in a hall of the building. The Development Center office has remained 'reasonably damage-free'. "Because the dividing wall in the company has done its job well." The E-Bike Development Center produces components for electric bicycles. According to officer on duty Frank van Berkel of the fire service, however, the batteries were not endangered. The smoke released would therefore not have been 'extra dangerous'.
Research
The site has been cordoned off by the municipality. Corps from Cuijk, Oeffelt, Wanroij, Haps, Grave, Zeeland and Uden were called up to fight the fire. Among other things, a cherry picker and a ladder truck were used. The Cuijk fire station is literally around the corner. Extinguishing was done with water from a ditch, among other things. The fire could not spread because there are no other companies near the E-Bike Development Center.
Source: https://www.omroepbrabant.nl/nieuws/3327474/grote-brand-bij-e-bikebedrijf-lijkt-aanslag-zegt-burgemeester-van-cuijk
All international sea cables Tennet defect simultaneously
All three of Tennet's international sea cables were out simultaneously last night. The network operator speaks of an exceptional situation.
The failures are not related. The submarine power cable between Eemshaven and Denmark was shut down last night due to a computer failure. That has since been resolved, RTV Noord reports. The 325-kilometer-long cable was already out between September and early January due to a break.
Other defects
The electricity cable between Eemshaven and Norway has also been broken since Monday. The cause of this failure is not yet known. According to Tennet, it depends on the weather conditions when the cable can be examined. It may be back in operation in April. The cable has failed more often. The sea cable between the Maasvlakte and England has been out since 8 December. Tennet is still working on the recovery. According to the network operator, the power supply in the Netherlands is not endangered by the faulty cables, because sufficient power can be obtained from other electricity sources. The Netherlands is also connected to, for example, Germany and Belgium via other power connections.
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2365495-alle-internationale-zeekabels-tennet-tegelijkertijd-defect.html
Arrests for trade in personal data from corona systems GGD
Two GGD employees have been arrested for trafficking in data of people who have had themselves tested for the corona virus or were involved in source and contact research. It concerns a 23-year-old man from Alblasserdam and a 21-year-old man from Heiloo. They worked for a call center of the GGD. According to RTL Nieuws, which discovered the fraud , there is a large-scale trade in the personal data of tens of thousands of Dutch people, originating from two corona databases of the GGD. RTL warned the GGD on Friday, the men were arrested a day later.
Name, address and BSN
The stolen data includes the name, address and citizen service number (BSN) of the victims. This allows criminals to commit identity fraud: purchases can be made and contracts can be signed. The data comes from the database CoronIT, with which corona tests are registered, and HPzone Light, which is used for source and contact research. It is not known how many people's data were stolen or sold, but RTL Nieuws reports that it has seen a collection of hundreds of Dutch people. According to the provider of the data, this was only a "taste" of the tens of thousands of Dutch people for whom he was able to provide the data. The data is offered for sale via chat services such as Telegram, Snapchat and Wickr.
Hundreds of euros a day
According to RTL, call center employees are actively approached by criminals with a request to steal data. They can earn hundreds of euros per day. Tomorrow the two detainees will be brought before the examining magistrate, who will determine whether they remain in prison. The police do not rule out further arrests. In a response, chairman André Rouvoet of umbrella organization GGD GHOR says: "This criminal activity is a slap in the face of 17 million Dutch people, who are all suffering from the corona crisis. Many of them try to comply with all measures in these times. being people wanting to make money off the back of all these people is unheard of. " The organization does not provide any further explanation during the investigation, but says it has improved security. Minister De Jonge of Public Health says in a response that everyone must be able to trust that their personal data will not fall into the wrong hands. He is happy that the journalist from RTL has reported this to the GGD, and that suspects have now been arrested. "People's willingness to test should not suffer from this."
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2365961-arrestaties-voor-handel-in-persoonsgegevens-uit-coronasystemen-ggd.html
All three of Tennet's international sea cables were out simultaneously last night. The network operator speaks of an exceptional situation.
The failures are not related. The submarine power cable between Eemshaven and Denmark was shut down last night due to a computer failure. That has since been resolved, RTV Noord reports. The 325-kilometer-long cable was already out between September and early January due to a break.
Other defects
The electricity cable between Eemshaven and Norway has also been broken since Monday. The cause of this failure is not yet known. According to Tennet, it depends on the weather conditions when the cable can be examined. It may be back in operation in April. The cable has failed more often. The sea cable between the Maasvlakte and England has been out since 8 December. Tennet is still working on the recovery. According to the network operator, the power supply in the Netherlands is not endangered by the faulty cables, because sufficient power can be obtained from other electricity sources. The Netherlands is also connected to, for example, Germany and Belgium via other power connections.
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2365495-alle-internationale-zeekabels-tennet-tegelijkertijd-defect.html
Arrests for trade in personal data from corona systems GGD
Two GGD employees have been arrested for trafficking in data of people who have had themselves tested for the corona virus or were involved in source and contact research. It concerns a 23-year-old man from Alblasserdam and a 21-year-old man from Heiloo. They worked for a call center of the GGD. According to RTL Nieuws, which discovered the fraud , there is a large-scale trade in the personal data of tens of thousands of Dutch people, originating from two corona databases of the GGD. RTL warned the GGD on Friday, the men were arrested a day later.
Name, address and BSN
The stolen data includes the name, address and citizen service number (BSN) of the victims. This allows criminals to commit identity fraud: purchases can be made and contracts can be signed. The data comes from the database CoronIT, with which corona tests are registered, and HPzone Light, which is used for source and contact research. It is not known how many people's data were stolen or sold, but RTL Nieuws reports that it has seen a collection of hundreds of Dutch people. According to the provider of the data, this was only a "taste" of the tens of thousands of Dutch people for whom he was able to provide the data. The data is offered for sale via chat services such as Telegram, Snapchat and Wickr.
Hundreds of euros a day
According to RTL, call center employees are actively approached by criminals with a request to steal data. They can earn hundreds of euros per day. Tomorrow the two detainees will be brought before the examining magistrate, who will determine whether they remain in prison. The police do not rule out further arrests. In a response, chairman André Rouvoet of umbrella organization GGD GHOR says: "This criminal activity is a slap in the face of 17 million Dutch people, who are all suffering from the corona crisis. Many of them try to comply with all measures in these times. being people wanting to make money off the back of all these people is unheard of. " The organization does not provide any further explanation during the investigation, but says it has improved security. Minister De Jonge of Public Health says in a response that everyone must be able to trust that their personal data will not fall into the wrong hands. He is happy that the journalist from RTL has reported this to the GGD, and that suspects have now been arrested. "People's willingness to test should not suffer from this."
Source: https://nos.nl/artikel/2365961-arrestaties-voor-handel-in-persoonsgegevens-uit-coronasystemen-ggd.html
Translated from Dutch to English with Google translate