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ASX-200 listed law group IPH has announced a halt in trading after it fell victim to a “cyber incident”.
The Sydney-based law group requested the trading halt after it detected that two of the firms under its name, Spruson & Ferguson and Griffith Hack detected unauthorised access to its network, according to a statement it provided to the AFR.
IPH said that upon discovering the breach, it “took steps to secure [its] IT environment and [is] working with leading external cyber security and forensic IT advisors to support [it] in responding and conducting an investigation to determine precisely what occurred”.
The company has not said exactly what data was compromised but has said that the investigation may take some time to complete and that it has “business continuity measures in place, with [its] teams continuing to work with [its] clients, and [that it’s] fully adhering to all regulatory requirements”.
“We take the privacy of our client and employee data very seriously and will provide updates as more information becomes available,” IPH said.
The legal group requested the trading halt in a letter to the ASX, which it has posted as an update to its website.
“IPH requests the trading halt to enable it to manage its continuous disclosure obligations in relation to a cyber incident that IPH has recently become aware of,” said IPH group general counsel and company secretary Philip Heuzenroeder in the request to the ASX.
“IPH requests that the trading halt continue until the earlier of a release of an announcement by IPH and the commencement of normal trading on Wednesday, 15 March 2023.
“IPH is not aware of any reason why the trading halt should not be granted.”
IPH is one of five publicly listed legal entities, joined by AF Legal, QANTM IP, Shine, and Slater & Gordon. It is made up of six firms, with Spruson & Ferguson being the flagship, Griffith Hack, AJ Park, Applied Marks, Pizzeys, and Smart & Biggar.
IPH has been contacted by Cyber Security Connect for comment on the breach.
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