Manx govt not affected by cyber attack

Advice for Islanders

The Isle of Man Government’s computer systems, including the Island’s health care set-up, have not been affected by the cyber-attacks against many countries and organisations.

The Cabinet Office confirmed the position on Saturday teatime.

Richard Wild, executive director for Government Technology Services (GTS), the shared service for all of government, explained they were working with international cyber security organisations to monitor the situation as it developed.

He says immediate action was also taken to alert users of the government system to exercise additional vigilance.

GTS has a strict policy of maintaining up to date systems and software, including the installation last March of the necessary patches which blocked what is described as a ‘malicious code’.

Mr Wild has added advice to help the general public protect itself from similar cyber-attacks.

Always:

exercise caution when opening attachments or clicking on links in emails;

back up important data on an external source not connected to the internet;

keep your operating system, applications and in particular your anti-virus software up to date.

Although the Isle of Man Government was unaffected in this global incident, GTS will continue to proactively monitor for threats, collaborate with partner organisations and invest in specialist staff and systems, the statement concludes.