Swiss vocational training institute pauses operations following a ransomware attack

The Vocational Training Centre in the canton of Schaffhausen, Switzerland, said it suffered a ransomware attack that forced it to take several systems offline and initiate restoration efforts.

 

In a press release, Berufsbildungszentrum, or the Vocational Training Centre, said that on October 3, it identified a data security incident affecting its internal network. BBZ immediately launched an investigation with assistance from external cyber security experts, to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

 

The IT team of the institute and the cantonal administration also took prompt measures to contain the attack and remove the unauthorised access from the network.

 

The training institute’s investigation into the data security incident later revealed that it was a victim of a cyber attack on October 2.

 

“When attacking the BBZ’s IT systems, cybercriminals blocked access to several systems and demanded a ransom. The attack was carried out using encryption malware on the BBZ servers. The gateway was a security gap in the firewall,” BBZ said in a press release.

 

“In collaboration with internal and external experts and in consultation with the Schaffhausen police, the BBZ has initiated the necessary technical measures to protect the IT infrastructure from further attacks and has begun to restore the systems,” it added.

 

The institute has notified the Schaffhausen police, the Federal Office for Cybersecurity and the cantonal data protection officer about the incident and is working with the agencies to resolve the issue at the earliest.

 

BBZ added that it has already notified employees, parents, trainees and training companies about the cyber attack. It has also decided to resume classes as normal after the fall break.

 

“Whether data was stolen during the attack is a matter of ongoing analysis. Internal and external experts are currently working on restoring the systems and data and analysing the attack.

 

“The goal is to restore the data and functionality of the systems, to obtain as complete information as possible about the extent of the attack and damage, and to take measures to ward off future cyber attacks,” the vocational training centre added.