Last Friday, the day before it was scheduled to play a football match against West Bromwich Albion, Manchester United revealed that it had fallen victim to a cyber attack.
What Manchester United chose not to do is give any details of the “cyber attack” it had suffered.
Despite the lack of information offered in the press release, I wouldn’t be surprised if Manchester United had been hit by ransomware.
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Certainly, Manchester United’s statement that after spotting the attack they “shut down affected systems to contain the damage and protect data” sounds very much like the football club’s systems had been hit by ransomware and that it had taken measures in an attempt to prevent further data from being encrypted.
Of course, no one wants to admit that they’ve been outmanoeuvred by an opponent that they should have given a good drubbing to, and so Manchester United plays the familiar card of describing the attack as “sophisticated”:
“Although this is a sophisticated operation by organized cyber criminals, the club has extensive protocols and procedures in place for such an event and had rehearsed for this risk. Our cyber defenses identified the attack and shut down affected systems to contain the damage and protect data.”
“Club media channels, including our website and mobile app, are unaffected and we are not currently aware of any breach of personal data associated with our fans or customers. All critical systems required for matches to ta ..
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