Local authorities say they are taking action to deal with a data breach by the revenues and benefits software supplier, Capita.

It follows a cyberattack on the company in March for which a group of Russian hackers claimed responsibility.

Rochford District Council expressed ‘disappointment‘ with Capita, which it is working with to ‘understand the full extent of the data breach and take any necessary steps to minimise any impact on residents.’

It says the data breach, which has affected several other local authorities around the country, relates to historic data and the information has now been secured.

It says it will contact any residents whose personal sensitive data may have been made available to view.

The council’s interim director of resources Tim Willis said: ‘The council is very disappointed at this and we are working closely with Capita to deal with this matter and to understand how the data breach from the company occurred.

‘We take very seriously our commitment to safeguarding the privacy and security of our residents’ personal information.

‘We know this will cause concern to residents and we want to apologise to those affected on behalf of Capita. We will be working with Capita to review the company’s processes and ensure the avoidance of any further breaches.’

Colchester City Council, another council impacted by the data breach, also expressed their disappointment with Capita.

Richard Block, Colchester City Council’s chief operating officer, said: 'The privacy and security of personal information is paramount, and we are extremely disappointed that such a serious data breach by one of our contractors has occurred.'

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