Capita insists no data was compromised by last week’s cyber incident

Capita said none of its data was compromised in a cybersecurity incident last week that left many employees unable to log into the company’s IT systems.

The outsourcing firm has admitted an IT issue has impacted some customer services and disrupted access to its internal Microsoft Office 365 applications.

Employees have been urged not to use virtual private networks or attempt to reset their passwords, according to the Times, which first reported on the incident last Friday.

Local authorities such as Barnet, Barking & Dagenham and Lambeth in London, with which Capita has contracts, all displayed messages on their website warning that phone lines for council tax, social security and call centers for business rates were down.

Capita reported Monday that security was “quickly made aware of the issue” and that “immediate steps were taken to successfully isolate and contain the issue.”

The London-listed company said its employees can now access Office 365 services, which include Word, Excel and PowerPoint, and is making “good progress” in reintroducing other customer services.

It did not confirm whether the event was a cyberattack or identify affected customers, but said there was “no evidence that customer, supplier or colleague data was compromised”.

In addition to councils and the National Health Service, Capita has contracts with government organizations such as the National Cyber ​​Security Center, of which GCHQ is the overarching arm.

It also provides services on behalf of the Cabinet Office, HM Revenue & Customs, the Department of Justice, numerous police forces and operates the London Congestion Charge Scheme.

In addition to public institutions, the company operates call centers for the car manufacturer BMW, the bookmaker William Hill, Thames Water, the telecommunications group O2 and the RSPCA.

In full-year results released earlier last month, the outsourcer said pre-tax profits fell 79 percent to £61.4 million, reflecting a significant impairment in its portfolio division and the loss of gains on its various divestitures.

Led by Jon Lewis, who joined in 2017, Capita has sold large parts of the company to reduce debt, focus on core business and transform the company into a high-tech company.

Companies sold by Capita in 2022 included payments business Pay360 Limited, two real estate and infrastructure consulting firms and IT services company Trustmarque

Capita shares were up 1.3 per cent at 37.1 pence as of Monday morning, meaning their value is up about three-quarters over the past 12 months.