Another day, another breach story in the news. Hackers compromised Co-op’s internal Teams chats. Attackers encrypted Marks & Spencer’s (M&S) systems, bringing online sales to a halt. And criminals sold 23andMe genetic data on Reddit.
UK consumers are drowning in breach alerts, but most companies offer nothing beyond “monitor your accounts and don’t worry.” Behind each notification lies a simple question: how worried should you actually be? So, what should consumers do? Panic or ignore the notifications entirely?
The Rising Tide of Data Breaches and Service Desk Attacks
Breach frequency has accelerated dramatically. The UK’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025 showed 43% of businesses experienced cybersecurity incidents in the past year, with ransomware attacks doubling from 0.5% to 1% of companies — affecting an estimated 19,000 organizations.
UK retailers have become prime targets. DragonForce hackers compromised Co-op’s systems, accessing data from 20 million members, including names, addresses, phone numbers and membership details.
In the M&S attack, linked to the Scattered Spider collective, hackers encrypted important systems using ransomware, suspending online sales worth £3.8m ($5.2m) daily for five days and wiping £500m ($685m) off the company’s market value.
Service desks make attractive targets because they combine weak security with high-value access. Support systems typically use basic authentication while accessing the same customer databases as core business systems. Attackers target service providers because one compromise yields data from multiple organizations.
Understanding Exposure Versus Exploitation
Headlines scream about “billions of records exposed,” but exposure doesn’t equal harm. Most exposed records never result in actual fraud or financial loss. A 2025 UK survey found that while repeat victimization is high — with businesses suffering an average of 30 cybercrimes per year — the average financial cost of cybercrime (excluding phishing) was £990 ($1357) per business.
Attackers need more than just names and addresses to cause real damage. They need authentication credentials, financial account numbers or identity documents. Most breaches expose incomplete data sets that can’t immediately enable fraud.
But don’t dismiss breaches entirely. The 23andMe breach demonstrated how basic information becomes dangerous. Hackers used credential stuffing attacks — testing stolen passwords from other breaches — to access 155,592 UK residents’ genetic data, family trees and health reports. The attack succeeded because customers reused passwords and 23andMe lacked multi-factor authentication (MFA).
Primary Consumer Risks Following a Data Breach
Identity theft poses the biggest long-term risk, especially when National Insurance numbers or financial data get exposed. The 23andMe case showed how sensitive data can’t be changed like passwords — genetic information remains vulnerable forever.
Account takeovers happen fast. If passwords get exposed, attackers test them across email, social media, and banking platforms immediately. NordPass found 60% of UK users recycle passwords, with 40% admitting they fear locking themselves out if every password is unique. Another 11% simply dismiss the threat altogether.
Phishing attacks spike after major breaches. The UK Cyber Security Breaches Survey showed that phishing accounted for 85% of successful attacks, with AI-driven impersonation making detection increasingly difficult. Attackers use exposed personal details to create convincing fake emails. And consumers can experience credit damage when fraudsters open new accounts using stolen identity information.
Immediate Steps Consumers Should Take Post Breach
Just received a breach notification? Here’s how you should immediately take action:
- Reset passwords strategically: Focus on accounts sharing credentials with compromised systems first. Use a password manager to avoid creating new weak passwords during rushed resets.
- Enable multi-factor authentication: Implement MFA on your most important accounts, including your primary email, banking and password recovery systems.
- Set up real-time financial alerts: Configure instant transaction notifications instead of waiting for monthly statements. Most banks offer these alerts for free.
- Place credit freezes for sensitive breaches: When identity documents are exposed, a credit freeze completely blocks new account openings without your permission. Fraud alerts only require creditors to verify identity — they can still approve accounts.
Long-Term Protective Measures and Ongoing Vigilance
Maintain these protective measures to support ongoing security:
- Use credit monitoring selectively: Credit monitoring can help for high-risk breaches, but it doesn’t replace personal attention. Free monitoring through your bank often works as well as paid services.
- Subscribe to breach notification services: Sign up for data leak alerts to learn about future breaches involving your information.
- Stay vigilant: Attacks can persist within compromised systems. Watch for unexpected login attempts, unrequested password reset emails or unfamiliar account activity.
Balancing Practical Response with Appropriate Caution
Match your response to the breach severity. For example, a breach involving only names and email addresses requires different actions than one that exposes financial account details or genetic information.
Recent UK breaches demonstrate that consumers can’t control organizational security, but can control their response. The average business now has cyber insurance (45% coverage, up from previous years), but individual protection relies on personal security hygiene.
The Critical Role of Service Providers in Breach Mitigation
UK service desk operators must improve security controls after recent compromises. The Co-op breach showed hackers accessing internal Teams chats and employee credentials through compromised service desk systems. Support staff relying on username and password authentication pose an unacceptable security risk. Specops Secure Service Desk solves this by giving helpdesk agents a tool to enforce verification, via phishing-resistant methods.
Recent UK incidents show that service providers must invest in security before becoming the next breach notification. IT professionals should evaluate their service desk security now, before attackers target their organization’s support infrastructure.
Interested to see how Secure Service Desk could fit in with your organization? Get in touch for a demo.
