10 October 2026
NIHRACS wants to let our Norfolk Island community know about a cybersecurity incident that has recently affected a small number of our email accounts.
What happened
Several people reported to us on 7 October 2026 that they received unusual emails from a NIHRACS email account. We escalated this to our IT managed service provider who acted promptly to contain the attack and secure our systems.
The steps we have taken
Our IT managed service provider has contained the attack.
We have engaged an independent expert cybersecurity and digital forensic provider to conduct a thorough investigation into the nature and extent of the incident.
We have reported the incident to the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC).
We have provided a preliminary notification to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).
Our commitment to you
Our investigation is ongoing. At the moment we don’t know what information was accessed in the email accounts. We will be in direct contact with impacted individuals as soon as our investigation is complete.
What you can do now
While our investigation continues, we encourage everyone in our community to remain vigilant. In particular, please:
Be cautious of any unusual, unexpected or unsolicited communications, particularly those requesting personal information, login details, or payment.
Avoid clicking on links or opening attachments in emails from unfamiliar or unverified senders.
Verify the identity of any sender before responding to requests for sensitive information, even if the communication appears to come from a known contact.
Report any suspicious communications claiming to be from NIHRACS to cyberincident@health.nlk.gov.nf
We know this news may be unsettling, and we’re sorry for any worry it causes. Protecting our community’s information matters deeply to us. We are working with experts to ensure that we have accurate information about the incident to share with impacted individuals.
If you have any questions in the meantime, please contact us at cyberincident@health.nlk.gov.nf
Liz Unkles
Manager, NIHRACS