Kevin Hawkins's Linkedin Analytics

I recently shared a brief update regarding the logistics company Peter Green Chilled, which supplies major supermarkets like Tesco, Sainsbury's and Aldi, and how their operations have been disrupted by a cyber attack. Although Peter Green Chilled is smaller in size compared to other UK food distributors, the impact of this incident is still considerable. The company confirmed in a release to the BBC that the cyber attack occurred on Wednesday evening but stated that they are not able to provide further details at that time. Tom Binks, the managing director, reassured that "the transport activities of the business have continued unaffected throughout this incident." Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones, founder of Black Farmer and one of Peter Green Chilled's customers, expressed concern about having "around ten pallets worth of meat products" with them. He warned that if these products don't reach retailers promptly, they may need to be "thrown in the bin." "Ten pallets equate to thousands of packs of products just sitting there while time runs out," he noted. "There's a lack of information. The entire supply chain is halted, leading to thousands of pounds worth of products that are simply going to waste." It seems this may be a ransomware attack, which typically involves data being encrypted and compromised; however, this has yet to be confirmed. Ransomware is particularly dangerous and often infiltrates systems through phishing attacks, where an employee unwittingly clicks on a harmful link. While there's no evidence this was the case here, it's essential to remember that employees can be both your first line of defence and your weakest link. No technology can offer complete protection against such threats. Regular education and training on cyber awareness for all staff are crucial, preventing attacks before they happen. If you need advice or guidance, feel free to contact us at 0800 494478 or visit our website www.hah2.co.uk. #CyberAttack #PeterGreenChilled #SupplyChain #Logistics #FoodDistribution #Ransomware #Phishing #CyberSecurity #FoodWaste #RetailSupplyChain #TomBinks #WilfredEmmanuelJones #BlackFarmer #CyberAwareness #TransportOperations #DataProtection #SmallBusiness #UKFoodIndustry

I usually post about all things cyber but occasionally I delve into other topics. One thing that has started to get right up my nose is the preponderance of political posts on all platforms of social media. I expected it of Twitter or X as Musk insists on calling and it's invading FB and Instagram. OK, but now we're seeing it daily on LinkedIn. As far as I'm aware, LinkedIn is a business forum and whilst I fully accept that there are some topics that border on political, there are others that a full of bile and bias. It's perfectly legitimate to post about things that will impact business. For example the increased costs around NI and minimum wage, and some will be impacted more than others. In those instances discussion around impact and how we are all dealing with the fall out can be very useful. So my objection isn't regarding stuff like that, but I am getting very fed with posts by some alleged business people, and I use the word alleged advisedly as there is a very real suspicion that these are in fact bots or people with an agenda, and I do find them incredibly irritating and counter productive to what we need to be addressing. Anyway rant over and have a good weekend everyone. I will following Spurs win last night I might just celebrate with a bucket of Merlot.

There seems to be a coordinated attempt to undermine UK businesses through a range of cyber attacks that are on the rise. This includes empty store shelves, canceled online orders, and the theft of data belonging to millions of customers. However, questions remain about whether this is a synchronised effort and, if so, who is behind it, as both companies and authorities are providing limited information. The National Crime Agency (NCA) has started to reveal its suspicions, pointing to a well-known cyber-criminal group, known in cybersecurity circles as Scattered Spider, as a significant focus of their investigation. This group stands out for several reasons. Firstly, many of its members are quite young, with some still in their teenage years. Secondly, they are predominantly native English speakers, which is unusual since most high-profile cyber criminals tend to originate from countries like Russia and North Korea. While there has been speculation about their involvement in recent retail hacks in the UK, this marks the first time law enforcement has confirmed that this possibility is under active investigation. "We are currently examining the group publicly known as Scattered Spider, but we have various hypotheses that we will explore based on the evidence to identify those responsible," stated Paul Foster, head of the NCA's national cyber-crime unit in a new BBC documentary. "In light of all the damage we're witnessing, apprehending whoever is behind these attacks is our utmost priority," he added. These hacks have been executed using DragonForce, a platform that equips criminals with the necessary tools to launch ransomware attacks. However, those orchestrating these attacks have yet to be identified, and no arrests have been made. If this trend continues, it suggests that no business is truly safe. Protect yourself before it's too late. Don't wait for an attack to occur; remediation will always be more expensive than prevention. If you need guidance, call us at 0800 4947478 or visit our website www.hah2.co.uk. #CyberSecurity #UKBusiness #DataProtection #ScatteredSpider #CyberCrime #Ransomware #NationalCrimeAgency #PreventCyberAttacks #BusinessSafety #DigitalSecurity #OnlineSafety #Hackers #ProtectYourData #CyberAwareness #StaySafeOnline #SecurityFirst 🛡️💻

With the preponderance of cyber attacks taking place in the UK at present, and not all on corporate bodies, SMEs are getting their share of the attention, we need to seriously consider what cyber security strategies we should be adopting and what resources we should be allocating to that. This article gets into a bit more detail. #CyberSecurity #SME #DataProtection #CyberAwareness #SecurityStrategy #DigitalSafety #RiskAssessment #EmployeeTraining #IncidentResponse #SecurityTools