Birmingham New Street station Wi-Fi hacked, along with 18 other railway stations in cyber-security incident

Birmingham New Street Wi-Fi Hacked in Cyber-Security IncidentBirmingham New Street Wi-Fi Hacked in Cyber-Security Incident
Birmingham New Street Wi-Fi Hacked in Cyber-Security Incident | Leonid Andronov - stock.adobe.com
Wi-fi hacked at Birmingham New Street and 18 other railway stations

The public Wi-Fi at Birmingham New Street station was among those affected by a recent cyber-security incident.

Network Rail confirmed that the Wi-Fi systems at several major UK railway stations, including Birmingham New Street, were hacked to display messages about terror attacks in Europe.

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Passengers attempting to log on to the Wi-Fi on Wednesday were met with alarming screens. Network Rail has since suspended the service and is working with British Transport Police and third-party provider Telent to investigate the breach.

A Network Rail spokesperson confirmed the wi-fi was still down and said: "We are currently dealing with a cyber-security incident affecting the public wi-fi at Network Rail’s managed stations."

The incident has also impacted other stations across the UK, highlighting broader security concerns.

The affected stations include:

  • In London, London Cannon Street, London Bridge, Charing Cross, Clapham Junction, Euston, King’s Cross, Liverpool Street, Paddington, Victoria and Waterloo
  • In the South East, Reading and Guildford
  • In the North West, Manchester Piccadilly and Liverpool Lime Street
  • In the West Midlands, Birmingham New Street
  • In West Yorkshire, Leeds
  • In the West and South West, Bristol Temple Meads
  • In Scotland, Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Central

British Transport Police was investigating, Network Rail said.

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The rail provider said it believed other organisations, not just railway stations, had also been affected.

"This service is provided via a third party and has been suspended while an investigation is under way," the spokesperson said.

Telent, the third party which provides the wi-fi for Network Rail, confirmed it was aware of the "security incident" and was "investigating with Network Rail and other stakeholders".

A spokesperson said: "We have been informed there is an ongoing investigation by the British Transport Police into this incident, so it would not be appropriate to comment further at this stage."

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