The German Federal Bar Association (BRAK), a prominent umbrella organization overseeing 28 regional bars and representing approximately 166,000 lawyers nationally and internationally, is grappling with the aftermath of a cyberattack on its Brussels office. The incident, which unfolded on August 2, has garnered attention as the organization contends with the fallout and potential data leaks.
On Monday, the group behind the cyberattack identified themselves as the NoEscape ransomware group, which claimed responsibility for targeting BRAK. This announcement comes hot on BRAK’s latest revelation about its ongoing cyberattack investigation.
Despite requests for updates on the situation, BRAK has directed inquiries to its prior news release from the previous week. In that statement, the organization disclosed its collaboration with a forensic firm to thoroughly probe the ransomware attack that compromised its Brussels office. As a result of their efforts, access to the organization’s email system has been reinstated, and measures are underway to reach out to individuals who may have had their data exposed during the breach.
In an official statement, BRAK recounted, “The Brussels office fell victim to a criminal cyberattack, which led to a failure of the IT systems. All network connections were immediately severed upon discovery.” To tackle the incident head-on, BRAK is collaborating with an external IT security service provider to undertake a comprehensive forensic analysis of the affected systems, aiming to better understand the extent of the breach and address the ensuing damage.
BRAK has not taken this situation lightly and has promptly reported the incident to the Federal Commissioner for Data Protection. In addition, they are in close coordination with the Belgian police, the Berlin State Criminal Police Office, and the Belgian Center for Cyber Security’s Cyber Emergency Response Team.
The malevolent actors behind the attack encrypted BRAK’s mail server and extracted 160 gigabytes of sensitive data. The organization remains uncertain about the full scope of compromised information, especially concerning communications sent to the Brussels office. As a precautionary measure, BRAK is proceeding under the assumption that this information has been leaked. While the organization has a distinct email service designed for legal professionals, BRAK has reassured the public that this mailbox operates on an entirely separate system, unaffected by the attack.
