1. [News](/news) 2. NT Government forced offline by compromised third-party vendor Northern Territory Government # NT Government forced offline by compromised third-party vendor The Northern Territory Government's third-party IT system supply has fallen victim to a ransomware attack. Edward Kost January 13, 2021 The Northern Territory Government was impacted by a ransomware attack against its third-party cloud-based IT system supplier. The compromised third-party vendor, which at this point remains undisclosed, was forced offline after the [cyberattack](https://www.upguard.com/blog/cyber-attack), causing NT government systems to become unavailable for three weeks while remediation efforts were undertaken. The NT Department of Corporate and Digital Development (DCDD) said in a statement that a supplier to the NT Government was “ransomwared.” A [ransomware attack](https://www.upguard.com/blog/ransomware) is a type of cyber attack where a victim’s sensitive data is breached, encrypted, and held hostage, only to be released if a set ransom price is paid. After making a ransom payment, victims are promised a decryption key to decrypt all of their seized data. The compromised third-party vendor avoided paying the ransom and restored its systems using backup copies, in line with its [incident response plan](https://www.upguard.com/blog/incident-response-plan). This incident is a harrowing echo of the devastating [U.S. Government supply chain attack](https://www.upguard.com/news/u-s-treasury-emails-breached) in December 2020, and further highlights the importance for organizations to institute a [third-party due diligence solution](https://www.upguard.com/product/vendorrisk) to protect themselves against compromised vendors. The DCDD said that the confidentiality and integrity of NT government data was not compromised in the breach. This incident comes less than two years after the NT Government invested $1.5 million into strengthening the territory’s cybersecurity posture. ## How secure is Northern Territory Government? Northern Territory Government is the state-level government administration for Australia's Northern Territory. It provides public services across areas including education, health, transportation, emergency services, environmental management, housing, business licensing, and community support programs for Territory residents and organizations. * View our free preliminary report on Northern Territory Government's security posture * 13 risk factors, including email security, SSL, DNS health, open ports and common vulnerabilities [View Northern Territory Government's score View score](/security-report/northern-territory-government) [https://nt.gov.au/](/security-report/northern-territory-government) ## Latest news Stay up-to-date with the latest news in cybersecurity. * ### [Hugging Face data breach: key facts and what we know so far](/news/hugging-face-data-breach-2026-07-20) A data breach involving Hugging Face was reported in July 2026. See incident details, impact on customers, and recommended security measures. UpGuard Team July 20, 2026 * ### [EY data breach: what happened and what's at risk](/news/ey-data-breach-2026-07-19) A data breach involving EY was reported in July 2026. See incident details, impact on customers, and recommended security measures. UpGuard Team July 17, 2026 * ### [South Florida Injury & Convenient Care data breach exposes names and Social Security numbers](/news/south-florida-injury-convenient-care-data-breach-2026-07-16) A data breach involving South Florida Injury & Convenient Care was reported in July 2026. See incident details, impact on customers, and security measures. UpGuard Team July 16, 2026 * ### [Park West Psychology data breach: what happened and what's at risk](/news/park-west-psychology-data-breach-2026-07-16) A data breach involving Park West Psychology was reported in July 2026. See incident details, impact on customers, and recommended security measures. UpGuard Team July 16, 2026 * ### [Fall River Municipal Credit Union data breach: what happened and what's at risk](/news/fall-river-municipal-credit-union-data-breach-2026-07-16) A data breach involving Fall River Municipal Credit Union was reported in July 2026. See incident details, impact on customers, and recommended security measures. UpGuard Team July 16, 2026 * ### [NPCIL data breach: World Leaks claims exposure of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant files](/news/npcil-data-breach-2026-07-16) A data breach involving NPCIL was reported in July 2026. See incident details, impact on customers, and recommended security measures. UpGuard Team July 16, 2026 [View all news](/news) ## Sign up for our newsletter UpGuard's monthly newsletter cuts through the noise and brings you what matters most: our breaking research, in-depth analysis of emerging threats, and actionable strategic insights.