WARRINGTON Borough Council (WBC) faced one cyber-attack between 2013 and 2017 – but no sensitive information was accessed.

An investigation by Big Brother Watch has revealed that local authorities across the UK have been subjected to more than 98 million cyber-attacks in the past five years.

WBC confirmed it was hit by one incident, in November 2016, although it 'did not result in the loss or breach of data and did not compromise its ICT security or systems'.

The authority was unable to provide further details 'in order to ensure it maintains the highest level of security'.

But it said no residents' information was 'at risk or accessed' during the incident.

A spokesman added: "As per most organisations, the council has a layered approach to ensure that its information and systems are protected in line with best practice and industry standards."

No budget has been allocated for cyber-security awareness training for council officers in the town.

Jennifer Krueckeberg, lead researcher at Big Brother Watch, said: "With councils hit by over 19 million cyber-attacks every year, one would assume that they would be doing their utmost to protect citizens' sensitive information.

"We are shocked to discover that the majority of councils' data breaches go unreported and that staff often lack basic training in cyber-security.

"Local authorities need to take urgent action and make sure they fulfil their responsibilities to protect citizens."