Tay fishing limbo after cyber attack

Tayside fishing businesses have been left in limbo for nearly two months after Sepa was targeted in a major cyber attack on Christmas Eve.

The security breach has left the organisation unable to access a range of services, including its own email servers, since the festive season.

The cyber attack has also left businesses unable to request permits for work along the River Tay or to see water levels, which can give them advanced notice of flood risks.

Claire Mercer Nairn, of Meikleour Fishing, said: “We’ve put in several applications to get permission to do some work which would be good to get done during lockdown.

“But it’s very difficult to get anything from Sepa at the moment.

“For licences it has started to be a problem and I’m worried about the water levels.”

Dr David Summers, director of the Tay District Salmon Fisheries Board, said projects with Sepa on the Tay and Earn had been at a standstill for months.

He said: “There’s been two months of nothing. It’s quite annoying.

“There was a number of projects that we were doing with Sepa before Christmas that we would have expected the consultations to be back by now but we haven’t heard anything.”

The national water body has warned the setbacks could continue for many months.

A Sepa spokesperson said: “It is important for us to be clear that this is a sophisticated criminal cyber attack that has had a major impact on the way Sepa works.

“While we have already achieved a lot in the first month, it is likely to take many months to fully recover our capacity to do all of our work.

“We are not the first organisation and, unfortunately, we won’t be the last to be hit by a major cyber attack.

“This hideous crime is becoming more commonplace.

“We are drawing on the experiences of others who have recovered from these attacks.

“We are taking the best advice and are committed to providing the best service we can as we take the necessary time to work back to our full capacity.”

The organisation said it had now managed to restore critical services, including immediate flood forecasting and warnings.

It now hopes to focus on the “second step” which would include applications for permits and broader flood warning work.

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A criminal attack that has had a major impact on the way Sepa works

LICENCES WORRY: Meikleour Fishing on the opening day of the salmon season on the Tay under Kinclaven Bridge.