Cyber attack could cost Western Isles council more than £1m

An Scottish council believes the cost of dealing with a cyber attack last year could run to more than £1m.

Western Isles local authority Comhairle nan Eilean Siar had previously estimated the cost would be £500,000.

More than £300,000 will be spent on upgrading systems to prevent a repeat of November's incident.

A suspected ransomware attack caused significant disruption to IT systems at the local authority.

The impact led to the comhairle having to build a new website and some bills, including council tax, being delayed.

The comhairle has written to the Scottish government asking for financial support with the costs and is awaiting a reply.

The local authority said a new website was expected by end of October.

Police Scotland, Cyber and Fraud Centre Scotland and Scottish government were involved in a criminal investigation in the aftermath of the attack.