Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to inform legal aid providers of the potential impact of the cyber attack on the Legal Aid Agency; and what assessment she has made of the cyber attack on the provision of legal aid services.

To reach as many potentially impacted individuals as possible, the Ministry of Justice published a notice at 08:15 on 19 May on GOV.UK. The statement provides information about the cyber-attack and directs concerned members of the public to the National Cyber Security Centre’s webpage.

Further, the Legal Aid Agency (LAA) has set up a dedicated helpline that will be available from Tuesday 27 May for members of the public who are concerned they may have been affected by the LAA data breach. HM Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) is working with the LAA to facilitate this by standing up an operational call centre team to handle telephone calls.

In the days following the discovery, we took immediate action to inform all legal aid providers that some of their details, including financial information, may have been compromised. Further updates, including the decision to temporarily take the Legal Aid Agency’s (LAA) portal offline and contingency measures implemented have been provided by email and a dedicated information page relating to the cyber-attack has been set up: Legal Aid Agency cyber-security incident - GOV.UK.

The cyber-attack is subject to an ongoing investigation and the LAA continues to work closely with the National Crime Agency and National Cyber Security Centre. Appropriate actions have been taken to mitigate the impact of the attack and contingency measures have been put in place to ensure those most in need of legal support and advice can continue to access the help they need during this time, as outlined on LAA’s dedicated information page.

Since taking office, this Government has prioritised work to reverse the damage of over a decade of under-investment. That includes the allocation of over £20 million in extra funding this year to stabilise and transform the Legal Aid Agency digital services. This investment will make the system more robust and resilient in the face of similar cyber-attacks in future.