Scottish councils have been warned of the "urgent need" to be prepared after an investigation into a "significant" cyber attack on Western Isles Council. The Accounts Commission said councils should assume it is a case of "when, not if" they are attacked and that a collective approach is needed to prepare for the future.

A report into the November 2023 cyber attack on Western Isles Council found that it caused immediate, severe and prolonged disruption, with the most significant impact for the council's finance team. Multiple systems and back-ups were encrypted during the incident which left them inaccessible, including critical financial systems such as the general ledger and associated accounting records.

The report found that while the council took swift action to protect systems

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