A ransomware intrusion has dismantled the 158-year-old UK transport company KNP Logistics after hackers exploited a single weak password to gain system access. The breach is believed to have started when cybercriminals guessed an employee’s password. The firm experienced a ransomware incident in 2023, resulting in critical data being encrypted and systems being locked. The group known as Akira was potentially linked to the attack and demanded a multi-million-pound ransom.
Despite having cyber insurance and following industry-standard security practices, KNP was unable to recover. The hackers left a message stating that the company’s internal systems had been severely damaged and requested a ransom in exchange for the decryption tool. Although no exact figure was provided, experts estimated the ransom at nearly five million pounds. KNP did not pay, resulting in irreversible data loss and business closure.
The breach originated from what investigators believe was a guessed employee password. Paul Abbott, who headed KNP, acknowledged that the breach originated from a single compromised account but opted not to disclose this to the employee involved. Looking back, he admitted that a single overlooked detail was enough to bring everything down.
The collapse of KNP is part of a much larger trend. Throughout 2023, the UK dealt with an estimated 19,000 ransomware incidents. Well-known names like M&S, Harrods, and Co-op weren’t spared either, each facing serious security breaches that exposed sensitive data. The Co-op CEO announced last week that data belonging to all 6.5 million members was compromised.
Attackers today lean less on complex code and more on tactics that exploit human trust. The National Cyber Security Centre notes a sharp rise in social engineering and the use of off-the-shelf malware kits. In some cases, hackers pose as IT staff, duping helpdesks into handing over access. Suzanne Grimmer of the National Crime Agency told the BBC that hacking cases have nearly doubled, now reaching 35 to 40 incidents weekly.
In response, Abbott is pushing for mandatory cybersecurity assessments across all sectors. Still, many firms, especially smaller ones, quietly hand over ransom payments just to stay afloat, while law enforcement works to keep pace with a ransomware threat that’s only getting more organized.
