About 270,000 UK forces records exposed to Chinese hackers

An estimated 270,000 payroll records belonging to nearly all members of Britain’s armed forces have been exposed to Chinese hackers in a breach at a third-party contractor that was discovered a few days ago.

John Healey, the shadow defence secretary, contrasted media reports of Chinese involvement with Shapps’s limited declaration, and accused ministers of having “no cross-government China strategy” and “completely inadequate resourcing” in defending against threats from Beijing.

Photograph: Thomas Krych/Zuma Press Wire/Rex/ShutterstockThose affected by the latest hack include MPs who are active paid reservists, with the Conservative backbencher Bob Seely, a member of the army reserves, telling the Commons he had received a warning phone call.

Royal veterans William the Prince of Wales, and his brother Harry left the military before 2018 and do not appear to fall in the affected groups, although they may not have had any payroll records at all.

Alfie Usher, an army veteran who runs Claims Bible, a military compensation specialist, said members of the armed forces should be vigilant.

“The MoD will offer a credit check software so people can keep an eye on new accounts being opened or any fraud alerts, along with individuals taking extra care when using their emails to avoid phishing scams,” he added.