15-year-old boy arrested in Northern Ireland over TalkTalk ‘cyber attack’

A 15-year-old boy from Northern Ireland has been arrested in connection with the cyber attack on TalkTalk’s website.

The identity of the suspect is not disclosed.

In August the company revealed its mobile sales site was hit by a “sophisticated and co-ordinated cyber attack” in which personal data was breached by criminals.

The company had recently insisted that the breach was “materially lower” than had been previously anticipated, adding it was impossible for customers lose money as a sole result of the cyber-attack. TalkTalk said on Saturday that the attacker probably gleaned less financial information than initially thought, but announced on Monday that a few banking information, such as account numbers, may have been stolen. Authorities meanwhile continue their search for the alleged hacker’s address as the investigation into telecom company’s website hack continues.

After that the reports surfaced that the hackers had demanded ransom from the TalkTalk CEO, Dido Harding for not leaking the stolen data online.

This arrest is the first one in connection with the hack. “Even then, the chances are very small indeed”, TalkTalk said in an issued statement on its website.

Officers from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) continue to work with the Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit (MPCCU) to investigate the case.

The teenager has already been taken into custody earlier today based on “suspicion of Computer Misuse Act offenses”, according to the Metropolitan Police in their statement.

Shares in TalkTalk have plunged since news of the attack broke at the end of last week, falling by 12 percent on the London Stock Exchange on Monday alone.

Parliament’s Culture, Media and Sport Committee has said it will conduct an inquiry on data protection, which will likely see TalkTalk executives summoned to appear.