Manchester United: IT Systems Disrupted in Cyberattack

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The Manchester United football club in the U.K. has confirmed that the team fell victim to a cyberattack on its systems.
 
Man U., one of the most popular soccer teams in the world, said that it was suffering ongoing IT disruptions. “The club has taken swift actions to contain the attack and is currently working with expert advisers to investigate the incident and minimize the ongoing IT disruption,” it said in a short statement issued Friday night. “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.”
 
The team said only that the attack was a “sophisticated operation by organized cybercriminals,” but other details are scant on what it involved – be it ransomware or anything else. The soccer juggernaut did say that personal data associated with fans or customers was not breached.
 
It also said that its public-facing systems – the club’s website, mobile app and social-media channels – are unaffected, and that no interruption of play is expected.
 
“All critical systems required for matches to take place at Old Trafford remain secure and operational,” according to the club. Last Saturday’s match against West Bromwich Albion went on as planned.
 
“The cyberattack on Manchester United is alarming but will certainly not be the last of its kind,” said Daniel Norman, senior solutions analyst at the Information Security Forum. “Many hackers see cyberattacks as a game, with organizations being the target. The pedigree for this attack does not get more famous than one of the biggest names in sports. It is no surprise that this giant of the sporting world has been targeted.”

Read more: https://threatpost.com/manchester-united...ck/161488/