Hackers Broke Into Zaha Hadid Architects’ Servers and Demanded Ransom for the Return of Stolen Data

Zaha Hadid Architects has been hit by
hackers, who broke into the firm’s servers and stole confidential
information last week.

The London firm, founded by the late architect Zaha Hadid, reported the cyber crime to the
police on April 21, after discovering messages on its servers
demanding money in exchange for the return of the stolen data,
the Architect’s
Journal reports. The ransomware attack also left
staff temporarily locked out of the company server.

‘We immediately worked to secure our network and reported the
incident to the authorities,” a spokesperson for the firm told
Artnet News in an email. “With minimal disruption to the work of
our teams, we continue to investigate any criminal theft of data
with cyber specialists.”

The company was more vulnerable to cyber crimes than usual since
its entire London-based staff of 348 are currently working from
home, accessing its networks remotely. Fortunately, the security
breach was less serious than it could have been, as the stolen data
had been previously backed up. The company was able to change its
passwords and has enlisted the aid of a cyber forensics team to
investigate.

“We have informed the Information Commissioner’s Office and
Action Fraud, and we will be fully cooperating with any
investigation. We are also notifying those who might potentially be
affected,” said the spokesperson. “We are unable to comment further
until the full investigation by third party cyber-security forensic
experts is completed.”

The firm also issued a warning to other companies currently
working remotely. “Cyber criminals [are] poised to exploit the
situation,” the spokesperson cautioned. “We strongly advise the
architectural community to be extremely cautious.”

Zaha Hadid Architects’ upcoming projects include the tech
complex on Chengdu’s Unicorn Island in China; a new Shenzhen,
China, headquarters for OPPO, a mobile brand; and One Thousand
Museum Residential Tower, a Miami apartment building across the
street from the Perez Art Museum Miami.

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and Demanded Ransom for the Return of Stolen Data appeared
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