{"id":1402,"date":"2025-08-03T10:03:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-03T10:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/03\/one-weak-password-and-hackers-breach-this-uk-companys-system-know-what-happened-tech-news\/"},"modified":"2025-08-03T10:03:00","modified_gmt":"2025-08-03T10:03:00","slug":"one-weak-password-and-hackers-breach-this-uk-companys-system-know-what-happened-tech-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/03\/one-weak-password-and-hackers-breach-this-uk-companys-system-know-what-happened-tech-news\/","title":{"rendered":"One Weak Password And Hackers Breach This UK Company&#8217;s System: Know What Happened | Tech News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"story-9455170\">\n<p><span class=\"jsx-730caffcddfd709\">Last Updated:<\/span><time class=\"jsx-730caffcddfd709\">July 22, 2025, 11:15 IST<\/time><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"asubttl-9455170\" class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 asubttl-schema\">Weak passwords are a major security risk and this UK-based company has seen the worst that could happen if hackers are able to bypass the system.<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 amimg\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"What happens when a weak password allows hackers to breach data, the company folds. (Photo: AI generated tools)\" title=\"What happens when a weak password allows hackers to breach data, the company folds. (Photo: AI generated tools)\" src=\"https:\/\/images.news18.com\/ibnlive\/uploads\/2021\/07\/1627283897_news18_logo-1200x800.jpg?impolicy=website&amp;width=400&amp;height=225\" loading=\"eager\" fetchpriority=\"high\" class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980\"\/><\/p>\n<p>What happens when a weak password allows hackers to breach data, the company folds. (Photo: AI generated tools)<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p id=\"0\" class=\"story_para_0\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\">Weak password risks have been warned by security experts for years and now a 158-year-old UK company has seen the perils of not keeping things secure. According to a <em>BBC report<\/em>, hackers were able to bypass its strict security and they did that by using one of the company\u2019s employees to breach its system and gain access to confidential and personal data. <\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"1\" class=\"story_para_1\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\">The report quotes the director of the company, KNP, who attributed the breach to an exposed password belonging to an employee. The hackers used the access to seek ransom from the company in lieu of all the data that is available through the exposed system.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"2\" class=\"story_para_2\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\"><strong>Password Breach Made Easy<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"3\" class=\"story_para_3\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\">Passwords are essential for how you use your digital accounts and company channels. Experts have always advised people to set up a strong password so that breaking them won\u2019t be easy. But that\u2019s exactly what has proven to be the reason why KNP has seen its system compromised. The hackers were able to guess the password of one KNP employee and successfully doing that forced the company into an unwanted ransomware situation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"4\" class=\"story_para_4\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\"><strong>Paying A Heavy Price<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"5\" class=\"story_para_5\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\">Hackers have encrypted the data they have accessed through KNP\u2019s system which has made it impossible for the staff to use or even view for their own business. The hackers have demanded a ransom to retrieve the data, and even shared a note, which reads, \u201c If you\u2019re reading this, it means the internal infrastructure of your company is fully or partially dead\u2026Let\u2019s keep all the tears and resentment to ourselves and try to build a constructive dialogue.&#8221;\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"6\" class=\"story_para_6\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\">The company was unable to meet the demands of the ransom which meant they could not get back the important business data, and that resulted in the company to fold because of the heavy losses.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"7\" class=\"story_para_7\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\"><strong>Businesses Need To Upgrade<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"8\" class=\"story_para_8\"><span style=\"font-weight:400\">Companies like KNP and their situation should paint a scary picture for other entities and the need to strengthen their passwords and cybersecurity infrastructure. They need to invest heavily in upgrading the tools, upskill and educating their employees about the value of setting up strong passwords, or else news like KNP shutting down will only increase in the years to come. <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd atawrap\">\n<div class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd atadetailwrp\">\n<div class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd ataname\"><span class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd atthumb\"><\/p>\n<figure class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"authorimg\" src=\"https:\/\/images.news18.com\/ibnlive\/uploads\/2023\/11\/aadeetya-3-2023-11-9de48efa65a9ed8ed13a8932cadb6d5a.jpg?impolicy=website&amp;width=0&amp;height=0\" class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd\"\/><\/figure>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd attitle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/byline\/s-aadeetya-21044.html\" class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd atamail\">S Aadeetya<\/a><\/p>\n<p>S Aadeetya, Special Correspondent at News18 Tech, accidentally got into journalism 10 years ago, and since then, has been part of established media houses covering the latest trends in technology and helping fr&#8230;<span class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd aurpdebtn\">Read More<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>S Aadeetya, Special Correspondent at News18 Tech, accidentally got into journalism 10 years ago, and since then, has been part of established media houses covering the latest trends in technology and helping fr&#8230;<!-- --> <span class=\"jsx-95088aad1b3c53cd aurpdebtn\">Read More<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 artcta\"><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">News18 Tech delivers the latest technology updates, including phone launches, gadget reviews, AI advancements, and more. Stay informed with breaking tech <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/news\/\">news<\/a>, expert insights, and trends from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/india\/\">India<\/a> and around the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/world\/\">world<\/a>.\u00a0 Also Download the <a href=\"https:\/\/onelink.to\/eng-article-eop\">News18 App<\/a>\u00a0to stay updated!<\/span><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 coral-count-custom\">view comments<\/span><\/p>\n<ul class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 atbtlink Location\"><span>Location :<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>United Kingdom (UK)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/ul>\n<ul class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 atbtlink fp\"><span>First Published:<\/span><\/ul>\n<div class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 brdcrmb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/\">News<\/a>  <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/tech\/\">tech<\/a>  <span class=\"brdout\"> One Weak Password And Hackers Breach This UK Company&#8217;s System: Know What Happened<\/span><\/div>\n<div id=\"coral-wrap\" class=\"jsx-9278cad478d6a6dc \">\n<div class=\"jsx-9278cad478d6a6dc coral-cont\">\n<div class=\"jsx-9278cad478d6a6dc coltoptxt\">Disclaimer: Comments reflect users\u2019 views, not News18\u2019s. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/disclaimer\/\" class=\"jsx-9278cad478d6a6dc\">Terms of Use<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/privacy_policy\/\" class=\"jsx-9278cad478d6a6dc\">Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"jsx-e71bd712c195739a jsx-2392726980 rmbtn news18_read_more\">Read More<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news18.com\/tech\/one-weak-password-and-hackers-breach-this-uk-companys-system-know-what-happened-ws-el-9455170.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last Updated:July 22, 2025, 11:15 IST Weak passwords are a major security risk and this UK-based company has seen the worst that could happen if hackers are able to bypass the system. What happens when a weak password allows hackers to breach data, the company folds. (Photo: AI generated tools) Weak password risks have been&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1403,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tech"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1402"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1402\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tezgyan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}