Investors in the owner of Royal Mail appear unfazed by a cyber attack on the letter and parcel delivery giant, which is thought to be the work of the prolific hacking group LockBit.
Shares in Royal Mail parent International Distributions Services PLC (LSE:IDS) opened the session almost flat at 224.5p. For the week, they were down 2.5%.
According to the Financial Times, LockBit stole and encrypted data from the company and is demanding a ransom payment.
The attack has caused severe disruption at Royal Mail, leaving it unable to send parcels and letters overseas.
LockBit is widely believed to be based in Russia and is one of the world’s most prolific ransomware operators, targeting hundreds of organisations since it first emerged around three years ago.
Brett Callow, a threat analyst at cyber security company Emsisoft, told the FT that the gang’s demands were based on each victim’s ability to pay and could range from tens of thousands of dollars to multiple millions.
He said it was unlikely Royal Mail’s ransom would be less than US$1mln. The attack on Royal Mail is the latest of its kind to hit a big company and has deepened fears of the growing risk posed by cyber threats.