UK’s most dangerous nuclear power station ‘hacked by China and Russia’

The UK’s most dangerous nuclear power station has been hacked by Russia and China, according to reports. Sellafield is said to have come under cyber attack by groups linked to the two nations, and could have been covered up by senior staff.

Formerly known as Windscale, Sellafield is a large multi-function nuclear site close to Seascale on the coast of Cumbria, England.

The Guardian found that authorities do not know exactly when Sellafield’s IT systems were first compromised, but breaches were detected around 2015.

Sleeper malware, a sneaky type of software, was reportedly discovered in Sellafield’s networks.

It is unclear if the malware has been removed, raising concerns about whether critical activities like handling radioactive waste have been compromised.

There is a possibility that foreign hackers accessed highly confidential data.

Due to Sellafield’s apparent failure to inform nuclear regulators for years, the full extent of data loss and ongoing risks is hard to determine.

The revelations are part of The Guardian’s year-long investigation into cyber hacking, radioactive contamination, and a toxic workplace culture at Sellafield — which has world’s largest plutonium stockpile and a repository for nuclear waste.

Built more than 70 years ago, it produced plutonium for nuclear weapons during the Cold War and accepted radioactive waste from other countries, such as Italy and Sweden.

The Guardian also revealed that Sellafield, which has more than 11,000 staff, faced special measures last year due to consistent cyber security issues, according to sources from the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) and security services. The watchdog is also getting ready to prosecute individuals at Sellafield for these cyber security failures.