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Cybercrime costing us €9.6bn

RESEARCH by Grant ornton Ireland has revealed the overall cost of cybercrime to the Irish economy in 2020 to be €9.6bn. e ‘Economic Cost of Cybercrime ‘report published by Grant ornton’s cyber security team estimates the direct and indirect costs incurred due to cyber-attacks against businesses, individuals, and government.

e 2020 research builds on Grant ornton Ireland’s 2014 report which noted an overall cost to the economy of €630 million due to cybercrime, a gure which has exponentially increased in the latest data.

Phishing and ransomware attacks, along with credit and debit card fraud, and operational technology focused attacks have all increased signi cantly in recent years with ransomware attacks, in which cybercriminals demand payment for the release of compromised materials, by far the most signi cant form of cybercrime noted in 2020.

Ransomware attacks alone and the cost of remedying such attacks reached over €2bn in 2020. e €2bn cost of ransomware attacks in 2020 estimates the direct costs associated with these events ie. ransoms paid, as well as indirect costs such as infrastructure and IT bills and reputational damages incurred through public discussion and media coverage. e report also notes a 100% increase in computer viruses and a 20% increase in phishing attacks. is comes as credit and debit card fraud also increased, leading to losses of €12m.

Head of Cyber Security Services at Grant ornton Ireland Mike Harris said: “Cybercriminals are innovative and opportunistic. is means we also need to be innovative in how we mitigate against potential cyber-attack risks. Ransomware attacks, for example, were once targeted mainly at consumers but we now know businesses, organisations and governments are the main targets for these types of crimes.” e past year has demonstrated huge changes and rapid digital transformation for Irish businesses and their employees across the country which cybercriminals saw as an opportunity to attack. businesses, organisations and agencies in the midst of this transformation.

Expert foodies: from le , Callum Priest (Gold and Best in Class Irish Pork, Bronze in the open Mystery Basket event), Ben Roche Silver in the Open Pasta,Tony Barry Lecturer and mentor, Stuart Dunne Maher (Silver in the Irish Pork), Liam Coad (Silver in the Organic Butchery, Bronze in the Mystery Basket event)

It’s food for though as four local WIT students take Chef Ireland awards

FOUR students from the BA (Hons) in Culinary Arts at Waterford Institute of Technology have won Gold, Silver and Bronze Medals at Chef Ireland 2021. e Chef Ireland National Culinary Competitions, which take place every two years, for three days in November, as part of CATEX 2021 in the RDS, Dublin. e four second year students are from across the south east and across a range of areas of expertise.. • Callum Priest, a native of

Tramore, Co Waterford won three accolades: Both

Gold and Best in Class Irish

Pork, and Bronze in the open Mystery Basket event. • Ben Roche, from Enniscorthy, Co Wexford won Silver in the Open Pasta category. • Stuart Dunne Maher from

Kilkenny city brought home Silver in the Irish

Pork category. • Liam Coad, from Waterford received two medals: Silver in the Organic Butchery and Bronze in the Mystery

Basket event.

Tony Barry, lecturer and mentor expressed his pride in the success of the students.

“I am delighted once again for our students to have had success at Chef Ireland. All four are second year students, and the commitment they have to their culinary skills in what has been a di cult year for all students, is to be admired. Bringing home a medal from such an event where participants are being observed live, by judges, is no easy feat.”

Marquez’s comic tale coming onstage at Watergate

GABRIEL García Márquez’s darkly comic tale, ‘A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings’, is coming to the stage for children and adults to share at the WatergAte on December 2 and 3. e new show will be directed by Dan Colley and is co-produced by the Riverbank Arts Centre and by Matthew Smyth

In a kitchen, in a theatre, two storytellers and their audience nd something remarkable — a very old man with enormous wings. e wise neighbour woman tells us he’s an angel. e priest says he’s an imposter. Something di erent

Pilgrims ock to see him, hoping to be healed by him, hoping for a gawp. ey leave with something di erent than what they expected. is hit show, directed by Dan Colley and starring Genevieve Hulme-Beaman and Manus Halligan, is being brought back to life after back-to-back sellout runs at Riverbank, Project Arts Centre and the Abbey eatre at the end of 2019.

At the moment the show is touring 13 di erent venues nationwide and the tour ends in Kilkenny in what promises to be a magni cent performance. An extensive international tour is planned in 2022 and 2023.

Adapted from Gabriel García Márquez’s Un señor muy viejo con unas alas enormes, this tale of magical realism is brought to the stage in search of its beautiful, strange, emotional richness.

Are Lingus threat to pull out of Heathrow

THE International Airlines Group (IAG) would consider cutting ights at Heathrow if the airport goes ahead with its proposal to increase landing fees.

IAG chief Luis Gallego told the Airlines 2021 conference in London that “if the rise in landing charges goes ahead, I know IAG will not be alone in reconsidering our airlines’ use of Heathrow.”

IAG airlines – including British Airways, Aer Lingus and Iberia – make up roughly 50% of all ights in and out of Britain’s largest airport.

Heathrow wants to raise landing fees by a massive 90% – –from £19.36 to £37.63 – in the next ve years in an e ort to o set the huge losses that resulted from the pandemic shutdown. Heathrow says it has su ered losses of £2 billion in 2020 alone.

e Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will allow the airport to raise the cap on airport charges by up to 76%. In February 2021, IAG argued that Heathrow had already paid out £4 billion in dividends to its shareholders. Fund grants now open for Kilkennyx Grants are now available for Kilkenny communities to deliver water, biodiversity, and climate action initiatives, with the Community Water Development Fund now open for 2022.

‘Serious’ burglary assault puts man in hospital

A BURGLAR broke into a house in Kilkenny city and seriously assaulted a resident in their own home. e shocking incident occurred at a house in the city at around 8pm on the night. e man, believed to be in his 60s, has been hospitalised.

Gardai have appealed to the public to assist their investigation into the aggravated burglary. ey have urged drivers who used the Golf Links Road, Johnswell Road, the Ring Road and the N10 link road to the motorway between 8pom and midnight on Monday November 22 who may have dashcam footage to contact Kilkenny Garda Station on 056 777 5000.

Meanwhile, An Garda Siochana relaunched Operation or on October 1, 2021, the operation actively targets organised crime gangs and repeat o enders through ‘coordinated crime prevention’. is year marks the seventh winter phase of Operation or.

An Gardai released their top tips to keep your house safe and secure during the winter season.

Lock up, light up and keep your house safe from burglars this winter by securing all doors and windows. And light up your home, by using timer switches when out.

Canview Ltd have been granted planning permission for the completion of the existing Togher Way residential development in Urlingford.

Plans for Togher Way include the provision of 23 new houses consisting of: 3 x 2-bed singlestorey detached houses; 10 x 3-bed two-storey semi-detached houses; and 3 x 4-bed two-storey detached houses

Green light for 23 new homes mix