Bernard J. Durkan
Question:510 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Finance the number of occasions on which viruses occurred in incoming e-mails in his Department in the past 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2541/01]
Written Answers. - Departmental E-Mail System.
Given the global nature of the Internet, dealing with e-mail viruses is now almost an everyday occurrence. My Department has a stringent policy and procedure for dealing with these. It has a three-tier anti-virus software architecture in place which is updated monthly as a matter of course and on any other occasion when new viruses become known. All staff are required to remain vigilant, to ensure that they always virus-check material received from outside the Department and not to open or execute material that has not been subjected to a virus check. When viruses are detected by the anti-virus software system, they are quarantined and deleted as a matter of procedure. As a result, it is not possible to furnish the Deputy with exact numbers of viruses occurring in incoming e-mails.
Bernard J. Durkan
Question:511 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Finance the number of occasions on which hackers have attempted to breach his Department's e-mail security in the past 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2556/01]
My Department's e-mail infrastructure has not been breached by hackers in the past 12 months. On one occasion, a student did attempt to send me thousands of e-mails. However, the e-mail security and filtering mechanisms in place allowed my Department to detect and stop this very early and, as a result, no disruption occurred. Officials in my Department ensured that the student's university was alerted of the attempt. The university immediately launched an investigation which resulted in the student apologising for the action.