'British Ministry of Defense payroll system administrator concealed hack'

SSCL, the IT company that manages the British Ministry of Defense payroll system, is said to have known since February that it had been hacked by suspected Chinese state hackers. The Guardian wrote this on Friday based on internal sources.

Earlier this week, the hack was confirmed to Sky News and the ministry said that it recently found out about the hack. The Guardian writes that SSCL had known about the hack for months and had not reported it. In April, SSCL was awarded a contract worth £500,000 to manage the ministry's cyber security. According to officials who spoke to the newspaper, it is possible that this contract could be withdrawn.

One of The Guardian's sources says that SSCL's 'slow response' is under further investigation. The company and parent company Sopra Steria hold a total of £1.6 billion in government contracts. The companies are responsible for a number of 'sensitive' tasks within the government, including staff recruitment for the Ministry of the Interior. Defense Secretary Grant Shapps does not just want to review SSCL's duties at his ministry. He has asked the entire British government to reconsider the collaboration with SSCL and Sopra Steria.

The companies do not respond to questions from The Guardian. The Prime Minister's office also does not want to comment substantively while the investigation is still ongoing. The Ministry of Defense has not pointed to a specific perpetrator, but according to Sky News, Chinese state hackers are suspected of being behind it. The Chinese embassy in London says China is not responsible for the hack.