‘Paddington’ estate attacked by Russian cyber criminals
The estate of Paddington Bear creator Michael Bond has potentially been compromised during a Russian cyber attack.
According to a report by The Sun, the Rhysida ransomware group which they claim is believed to be based in Russia, targeted London firm The Agency. Their clients include Bond’s estate, the late author who created Paddington and died in 2017.
The Agency were ordered to pay a ransom by Rhysida to protect the personal data which had been put at risk. However, they instead chose to report the incident to The Met Police which is now being examined by the cybercrime unit and Information Commissioner’s Office.
In a letter to clients, The Agency’s Judy Edmonds wrote: “Last week The Agency was subject to a ransomware attack by a criminal cyber group.”
She continued: “They claim to have stolen data they will publish if not paid a ransom. We have taken measures to ensure the security of our systems and continue to closely monitor them as a priority.”
Edmonds also issued a follow-up email in which she admitted there was a “reasonable chance” the files could be leaked by the hackers who broke into the system, adding, “Unfortunately, this does include some of your data.”
Outside of serving the estate of Paddington, The Agency also looks after the estate of The Snowman cartoonist Raymond Briggs.
The cyber attack took place on February 14th, the same day as the release in the United States of the latest Paddington movie, Paddington In Peru.
In an interview with the Big Issue, Ben Whishaw, who voices Paddington, admitted to feeling the pressure following the success of the first two movies in the series. “You don’t want to let people down. No, you really don’t,” he said, “Definitely felt the pressure to keep the bar high because Paddington’s something bigger than all of us that you want to serve well.
The British actor continued: “He’s full of goodness in a way that is not irritating, which is such a hard thing to pull off. It’s so fine, to get that balance right and to keep the humour and the sincerity together.”
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