Guernsey cyber-security warning for islanders and businesses

Joh Harvey's business was the victim of a cyber attack

There has been a rise in cyber-attacks since the war in Ukraine began, according to the States of Guernsey and a cyber-security firm.

The States said: "We have seen a noticeable increase in the number of phishing emails since the war began."

The Channel Islands see more than 10 million cyber attacks every month, according to research by Guernsey firm Black Arrow Cyber Consulting.

It encouraged vigilance, as the islands are not immune to these attacks.

A States spokesman said: "The whole community needs to remain vigilant against such emails, which are designed to appear to be from reputable sources in order to dupe people into providing personal information or access to their device via the clicking of a link."

Bruce McDougall, from Black Arrow Cyber Consulting, said: "Criminals don't let a good opportunity go to waste. So they're conducting scams encouraging people to make false payments in the belief they're collecting for charities."

How do you stay cyber secure?

• It's easy for an attacker to steal or guess your password, so have another method of authentication such as a code on your phone. This reduces the chances of somebody getting into your account by 90%

• Make sure the software on your devices is as up to date as possible. So when you see a notification telling you to update, do it as soon as possible

• Make a copy of your important files. Backup copies must be kept separate from the originals

Source: Black Arrow Consulting

One of black Arrow's clients, health food provider RAW stores, fell victim to a cyber-attack which led to a data breach of some of its customer details.

Founder and CEO Joh Harvey said: "It felt like I was in a sea of sharks but I couldn't see the sharks."

He said: "We found out when the police got in contact with us to say that customers had reported suspicious transactions."

The company had to stop online sales to prevent further customers being affected.

Mr Harvey said they invested in additional security procedures and redeveloped their website, but the attack had a huge impact on the business, with a drop in sales for a long time afterwards.

Mr McDougall said: "I think people definitely need to be more aware. There's nothing here on the Channel Islands that protects us at all."

Mr Harvey echoed that message: "We have a very safe and secure lifestyle in Guernsey, but the internet doesn't have borders and online you can be accessed by anyone anywhere in the world."

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