Two teenagers appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court today charged over the cyber attack which crippled Transport for London’s fares and data systems for months.
Day in court: Thalha Jubair and Owen Flowers appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ today facing a range of charges
Estimates put the cost to Londoners of TfL fixing and dealing with the cyberattack at £30million.
During the course of the investigation, TfL estimated that the bank details of 5,000 passengers had been accessed by the hackers.
As a result of the hack, TfL was forced to suspend the renewals of Oysters and other travel cards for everal months.
Investigators believe the cyberattack in August 2024 was carried out by members of the online criminal collective known as Scattered Spider – the same group whose hack attacks took down Marks and Spencer and the Co-op.
Thalha Jubair, 19, from East London, and Owen Flowers, 18, from Walsall, West Midlands, were arrested at their home addresses on Tuesday by the National Crime Agency and City of London Police.
They have been charged with conspiring together to commit unauthorised acts against TfL under the Computer Misuse Act.
Flowers was initially arrested for the TfL attack a year ago, when NCA officers identified further potential evidence of offending against healthcare companies based in the United States.
Flowers has also been charged with conspiring with others to infiltrate and damage the networks of SSM Health Care Corporation and attempting to do the same to Sutter Health’s networks.
Jubair has been additionally charged under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 for failing to disclose the PIN or passwords for devices seized from him.
Year-long investigations: the NCA found links to other cyber attacks on US-based businesses
“Today’s charges are a key step in what has been a lengthy and complex investigation,” said Paul Foster, the head of the NCA’s National Cyber Crime Unit.
“This attack caused significant disruption and millions of pounds in losses to TfL, part of the UK’s critical national infrastructure.
“Earlier this year, the NCA warned of an increase in the threat from cyber criminals based in the UK and other English-speaking countries, of which Scattered Spider is a clear example.
“The NCA, UK policing and our international partners, including the FBI, are collectively committed to identifying offenders within these networks and ensuring they face justice.”
Both defendants have been remanded in custody to appear at Southwark Crown Court on October 16.
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Two kids outwitted TFL’s £276,00 a year Chief Technology Officer!
This isn’t the work of two kids, Christopher. They’re the only two that got caught.
Tfl traffic cameras are still unavailable after this hack. I e-mailed them to ask when/if they’re ever coming back and didn’t receive a reply, so I suspect they’re not.
One theory advanced to me (a technological illiterate) is that the hackers may have got in via the system.
Anyone know if a) this is possible and b) whether the cameras will ever return?