Major family law firm Paterson and Dowding data hacked for ransom, extremely sensitive client info on dark web

Extremely sensitive client data — including bank statements and financial information — has been stolen from a Perth family law firm and posted over the dark web by an international ransomware gang. Paterson and Dowding Family Lawyers, which lists the likes of former WA Premier Peter Dowding among its former partners, confirmed the recent cyber attack. It is understood to have been perpetrated by the emerging Anubis operation, which has also reportedly targeted sectors including healthcare and construction in Australia, the US, Canada and Peru. “As soon as we became aware of unusual activity on our system, we took immediate action to engage external experts, contain the incident and commence an urgent investigation,” a spokeswoman said. “Unfortunately, at this early stage of our investigation, we have identified that a subset of personal information was accessed and taken by an unauthorised third party. “We are also aware that some information has been published externally by the unauthorised third party, and we are urgently investigating the nature and extent of this data.” The spokeswoman said the company had notified all clients and staff, outlining precautionary steps they could take to protect their information. “We take the privacy of our clients and staff very seriously and we sincerely apologise for any concern or inconvenience this incident has caused,” she added. The data leak is understood to contain financial information such as bank statements and raises grave concerns about the safety and security of clients, particularly those fleeing domestic violence. It comes as lawyers and legal clients caught up in a massive 300 gigabyte Dire Wolf attack on the Legal Practice Board of WA, discovered in May, continue to worry if information put up by the group on the dark web is theirs. Cyber security expert Patrick Finnegan said the primary obligation of a hacked entity was to notify affected clients and regulators, and preserve client confidentiality. Injunctions were useful, he said, including to minimise “online rubbernecking”. He issued a warning to clients planning to look for their own files on the dark web. “A client wishing to investigate whether their own documents have been leaked should seek legal advice as to whether a court would grant them an exception to the injunction,” he advised. Mr Finnegan also called on hacked firms to share information about how their breach happened - without disclosing sensitive data - to help others strengthen defences and update incident response plans. “Case examples, such as the HWL Ebsworth breach in Australia, have resulted in official reports and ‘lessons learned’ documents that provided actionable strategies,” he said. The spokeswoman for Paterson and Dowding, which has been operating for more than 50 years, said it had notified the Office of the Information Commissioner and the Australian Cyber Security Centre. “We will continue to support our clients and staff,” she said.