20 1MX Saturday August 1 2020 | the times
News
Data on thousands of Labour donors
has been accessed by cybercriminals in
a hack that has affected more than 100
British institutions.
Labour has revealed that its database
was breached after an attack on Black-
baud, an American software provider.
Sources told ITV News that all donors,
including those who gave less than
Exhaust emissions will be cut to zero
when vehicles enter city centres with
technology designed to improve air
quality.
A new generation of vans has been
launched that will automatically switch
to electric drive mode when being
driven on streets suffering air pollution.
The system, introduced by Ford, uses
geo-fencing technology to detect when
the vehicle enters an ultra-low
emission zone such as that established
in central London. It can also trigger
battery power when being driven close
to schools, playgrounds or other
sensitive locations. The technology will
be introduced in new Transit vans sold
in the autumn, with owners also able to
retrofit it to existing vehicles.
The move follows concerns over the
impact of van traffic, with the boom in
internet shopping over the past decade
causing a rise in pollution and conges-
tion in built-up areas.
Latest figures from the Department
for Transport show that light commer-Van cuts pollution
by switching to
electric in the city
cial vehicles — which includes delivery
vans — travelled 50.4 billion miles in
Britain in the year to the end of March,
a 24 per cent rise in a decade. It was
more than four times the average rise
for all vehicles.
Vans are also responsible for a surge
in dangerous nitrogen oxides (NOX)
emissions, with long-term exposure to
the gas causing breathing difficulties
and premature death. Levels of NOX
from vans soared by 43 per cent to
99,300 tonnes a year between 2007 and- Total NOX emissions from all
other forms of road transport, includ-
ing cars, buses and HGVs, fell sharply
over the same period.
On Thursday The Times reported
that many delivery vans faced being
banned from city centres under gov-
ernment plans to clean up air. A report
from the DfT said that it would impose
“freight consolidation schemes” in
which all deliveries are made to
out-of-town depots and then taken on
by environmentally friendly vehicles.
Ford’s new Transit Custom hybrid
van has a petrol engine and battery
power. Mark Harvey, director of com-
mercial vehicle mobility for Ford of
Europe, said: “Improving the quality of
air, and quality of life, in our towns and
cities is a goal that we all have a respon-
sibility to drive towards.”
Graeme Paton Transport CorrespondentTHE GROSBY GROUP/BACKGRIDBaby love The Baby II, a miniature electric version of the Type 35, marks Bugatti’s 110th anniversary. Only 500 will be made
Labour donor data stolen in mass hack
£7,500 and therefore did not have to de-
clare the sum to the Electoral Commis-
sion, are likely to have been exposed.
The hackers attempted a ransom-
ware attack, in which files are encrypt-
ed and only returned when cash is paid,
but only managed to steal a “subset of
data”. Blackbaud said that it paid a ran-
som to ensure the data was destroyed.
The Information Commissioner’s
Office said that it had been contacted
by 125 organisations affected by thebreach, including 37 British universi-
ties, three schools, the National Trust
and dozens of other charities, and was
investigating.
Although the hack occurred in May
Blackbaud appears to have only begun
telling affected companies last month.
Labour said: “We have reported the
matter to the ICO and are working to
establish further facts around this situ-
ation. We will take any action necessary
in line with our statutory obligations.”Tom Knowles
Technology Correspondent
clean air
for all