UK Legal Aid Office online service, which led to the theft of criminal cases

A large-scale cyberattack on the UK Legal Aid Office online portal has led to the theft of confidential personal information, in particular, data on criminal records, financial status, residential address and other sensitive information of applicants.

The UK Ministry of Justice officially confirmed the fact of the hack, noting that hackers gained access to the data of everyone who applied for legal aid through the online service since 2010. Initially, the incident seemed local, but further investigation revealed a much larger scale. The portal is currently temporarily suspended for maintenance.

Legal aid is a government support program that covers the costs of legal advice, mediation in family cases and representation in court for people who cannot afford it themselves. The data leak potentially puts thousands of people at risk of being hacked, their information used for blackmail, financial fraud or identity theft.

Victims are advised to update their passwords, monitor suspicious activity closely, not respond to unknown phone calls and emails, and report any instances of fraud. The agency expressed its regret and promised to provide further updates on the incident soon.