There were a massive 99 data breaches and cyber attacks in August, making it the third-biggest monthly total of the year by number of security incidents. But, by contrast, only 36,673,575 records were confirmed to have been leaked, which is the fewest we’ve recorded since May 2018. The true figure, as always, will be higher than this – in part because organisations rarely disclose how many records were involved in security incidents. But we’ll take a positive however we can take it, particularly given how leaky organisations have been throughout lockdown. You can find our full list of publicly disclosed data breaches from August in this blog, with incidents affecting UK organisations listed in bold.

As always, you can find the full list of incidents below, with those affecting UK organisations listed in bold. In case you missed it, you may also be interested in our first quarterly review of data breaches and cyber attacks. The report takes the information collected in these lists and summarises our findings. It includes year-on-year comparisons in the number of incidents that were detected, a review of the most frequently breached sectors and a running total of incidents for the year.

"This is not a good day for South Carolina." That was Governor Nikki Haley's public reaction to news that a foreign hacker had infiltrated South Carolina's Department of Revenue and made off with 3.6 million social security numbers and 387,000 credit/debit card numbers. Of the compromised cards, state officials believe only 16,000 were unencrypted, though the staggering social security breach affects more than half of South Carolina's 4.6 million population. Governor Nikki Haley held a presser earlier this afternoon confirming the attack — first uncovered by WLTX Columbia. “The number of records breached requires an unprecedented, large-scale response by the Department of Revenue, the State of South Carolina and all our citizens,” said Haley before outlining steps that residents can take to discover if their information was exposed.

We've already seen supposed "elite hackers" attacking the World Health Organization, cyber criminals hitting a COVID-19 vaccine testing facility with ransomware and healthcare workers being targeted with Windows malware using coronavirus information as the lure.

Now, it has been reported, hackers have forced the Italian social security website to shut down for a period, as the most vulnerable in society started their claims for a €600 ($655) crisis payout.

INPS has been distributing emergency funds to those hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic

The website of INPS, the Italian department of social security and welfare, appears to be operational again after an apparent cyber-attack forced it offline yesterday (April 1).

A ransomware attack forced Ireland’s healthcare service to shut down its servers. Here’s what we know so far.

Kaspersky Team May 14, 2021 Updated on May 17, 2021. Media outlets are reporting an attack by ransomware on the Health Service Executive (HSE), Ireland’s healthcare system. The HSE decided to shut down key information systems for thorough investigation and protection against further threat spread. A number of clinics have reported temporary shutdowns or at least disruptions in their operations, although they continue to provide emergency care services. The COVID-19 vaccination program was not interrupted, although some institutions have had to revert to outdated workflow systems

U.S. Congress is discussing legislation, not yet finalized, that could significantly alter the employee health and benefit landscape.

ilo.org (19.10.2021) The online platform will serve as a unique worldwide reference and source of information on national employment policies, and strategies to promote youth employment.

worldbank.org (07.10.2021) The World Bank, in collaboration with the Government of South Africa, released a new report assessing the country’s social assistance programs and systems. In an environment of high unemployment, persistent poverty, weak economic growth and shrinking fiscal resources that has been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Social Assistance Programs and Systems Review: South Africa report underscores the critical role of the grant and social assistance system in mitigating poverty. This report also provides policy considerations that could help move South Africa’s system of social transfers towards sustainable and productive investments in its people.

ZAWYA  (18.10.2021) Thailand's cabinet on Tuesday approved a further 92 billion baht ($2.76 billion) of relief measures to help boost its flagging economy as the Southeast Asian country deals with its biggest and most prolonged coronavirus outbreak.  Thailand earlier this year approved a further 500 billion baht borrowing plan to mitigate the impact of the epidemic. Of the approved support, the government will offer 42 billion baht of cash transfers under an existing co-payment scheme between November and December, spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana told a news conference. There will be 3 billion baht in e-vouchers for spenders under an existing scheme, about 8.1 billion baht for holders of state welfare cards and about 1.38 billion baht for those with special needs, he said. "Every measure is to stimulate a recovering economy and to help people and business operators," Thanakorn said. The cabinet also approved 37.5 billion baht of stimulus to help smaller firms retain 4.2 million jobs, he said. That is less than an earlier estimated 45.4 billion baht for 5.04 million workers, according to the state planning agency.

allafrica.com (14.10.2021) Social protection is a right for the federal government and not a token or favour. The last 18 months have been difficult for families and communities across the country as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The vision of equality and inclusion as explained in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has become blurred. Social protection programme coverage in Nigeria has remained low during the COVID-19 crisis. Between mid-March and July 2020, about 4.9 per cent of households received assistance in the form of cash from institutions including the government and about 3.6 per cent in kind assistance. The COVID-19 pandemic has also exposed the weakness of the current global economic model and social protection system. More than four billion persons, about 53 per cent of the global population, are completely unprotected against economic shocks. With about 17.4 per cent social protection cover, Africa has the least social protection coverage for its citizens leaving most Africans vulnerable to economic shocks, poverty, hunger, huge sickness burden, illiteracy, and destitution.

oecd.org (14.10.2021) The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a significant deterioration in public finances, adding to pre-existing strains from long-term structural challenges including population ageing, climate change, rising inequality, digitalisation and automation. This report, originally prepared for G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors at the request of the Italian G20 Presidency, considers the challenges and opportunities of developing public fiscal policy strategies as countries seek to “build back better”. The report focuses in particular on how tax policy can be designed comprehensively so that fiscal systems can deliver a balance of equity, growth and sustainability, highlighting some of the key considerations that policymakers should take into account to ensure optimal tax policy design and the successful implementation of tax reform.

blogs.worldbank.org (07.10.2021) The Guaranteed Minimum Income (GMI) program is the flagship of Greece’s social protection reforms and particularly effective by international standards in reaching poor households.  Its national launch in February 2017 aligned Greece with other EU members in offering a last resort benefit.  The government used the program as a platform to provide additional one-off support during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 Asian Development Bank (August 2021) The three-tiered elderly system in the country consists of home-based care as the core support, community-based care as necessary support, and residential care as supplementary support. The main policies and progress of the system are explained, including insights on how the government encourages private sector involvement. A key recommendation of this paper is the need for better integration of residential and home- and community-based care as part of the elderly care system. 

worldbank.org (06.10.2021) In Nepal, the lockdowns that were adopted to mitigate the public health impacts of Coronavirus (COVID-19) were accompanied by a significant contraction in economic activity. These in turn suggest a negative outlook for poverty and welfare, particularly in the face pre-existing macro and micro vulnerabilities. Even prior to Coronavirus (COVID-19), with consistently high rates of vulnerability and exposure to a range of shocks, the risks to falling back into poverty remained high in Nepal. In Nepal, high rates of vulnerability along with prolonged lockdowns suggest that there is an urgent need to understand the immediate and still evolving impacts of Coronavirus (COVID-19) on welfare. This paper uses data from two phone surveys implemented by the World Bank in late 2020 to early 2021 to fill this critical need for evidence to track the overall impacts of the crisis in the labor market, and on key sub-groups that are relevant to welfare in Nepal.

worldbank.org (23.06.2021) The report discusses the "Takaful and Karama" cash transfer program (TKP) in Egypt. Launched in 2015, it is a flagship social assistance initiative of the government. Takaful is a family income support program. It is a conditional cash transfers programme targeting poverty reduction and improved human development outcomes in health and education. Karama is an unconditional income support and social inclusion sub programme. The intended beneficiaries are the poor elderly (above age 65) and persons with severe disability.

china.org.cn (30.09.2021) The number of people of retirement age in Germany will rise by 22 percent by 2035, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said on Thursday. The number of people aged 67 or over in the country will go up to 20 million, a 22 percent increase from 2020, the first medium-term population projection conducted by Destatis showed. The head of the Federal Employment Agency, Detlef Scheele, was quoted in the media as saying in August that Germany needed 400,000 new workers per year to replenish its labor force. The aging population was the main reason behind the shortage of workers, Scheele said.

pensionpolicyinternational.com ( (01.10.2020) Mr Alhassan Yakubu Fuseini, the Tamale Zonal Manager of the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA), says the Authority plans to rope in 11 million workers in the formal sector onto pension schemes. He said as the NPRA works to achieve its target, it would also ensure that coverage for the informal sector was increased from the current three per cent to 40 per cent by 2026.

Al Sistema Nacional de Cuidados le competen:

• Aumentar la cobertura y elevar la calidad de los servicios de cuidado para la primera infancia, que estimulen el desarrollo de niños y niñas, faciliten su acceso a la educación y brinden a los hogares una alternativa corresponsable de cuidados.

• Mejorar la atención de las personas mayores y las personas con discapacidad que se encuentran en situación de dependencia mediante el desarrollo de estrategias corresponsables de cuidado que se adecuen a las necesidades y capacidades de las personas y los hogares. Fortalecer las capacidades institucionales y su mejora continua.

• Construir un marco legal que a partir de la articulación de las disposiciones legales existentes y nuevas que se generen se reconozca el derecho a cuidar y ser cuidado en condiciones de calidad a aquellas personas en situación de dependencia, con independencia del tipo de prestador.

• Desarrollar una oferta de formación para el trabajo en cuidados que permita aumentar la cobertura y elevar la calidad de los servicios para la población en situación de dependencia, en marco de una estrategia que permita la construcción de trayectorias educativas y laborales de quienes se desempeñan en el sector.

• Producir y gestionar información oportuna y pertinente sobre los diferentes sujetos de la política, las prestaciones y servicios de Sistema de Cuidados, para la toma de decisiones y el cumplimiento de los objetivos.

• Generalizar el reconocimiento público del derecho a los cuidados -como nueva conquista de la agenda de derechos- a través de una estrategia comunicacional que contribuya a la transformación cultural necesaria para un mayor compromiso en la responsabilidad compartida entre varones y mujeres respecto a  los cuidados.

tribune.com.pk (19.09.2021) Taking a lead on universal social protection, the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations convened the first meeting of the Group of Friends on Social Protection along with Turkey, Nigeria and Costa Rica.

brookings.edu (24.09.2021) With COVID-19’s disruptions in employment, child care, and education, it is unsurprising that child poverty substantially increased in 2020—roughly 1.2 million more children were living in poverty in 2020 when compared to 2019 (an increase from 15.7% to 17.5%). As child poverty is unequally distributed in America, so too were its increases—poverty rates grew the most among Latino children (4.2 percentage points), Black children (2.8 percentage points), and children from female-headed families (4.1 percentage points), while they remained flat for white and Asian children.

calpnetwork.org (10.03. 2021) Challenges due to the pandemic have led to all kinds of innovations and adaptations focused on remote targeting, enrolment, verification and delivery. While required for the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, these new approaches might be useful in future responses that require remote targeting and delivery, such as in fragile contexts.
This case study explores digital remote targeting approaches that GiveDirectly is using for cash assistance, and ways that the organization is addressing data responsibility. Early results indicate that the approach they have taken has been effective at quickly delivering COVID-19-related cash transfers to a large number of individuals living in extreme poverty in record time. 

European Commission (07.09.2021) This ESPN report examines the (sub)national social protection and inclusion policy measures that European countries put in place to help address the social and financial distress created by the pandemic and by lockdown policies. It covers the 27 EU Member States, the 7 candidate and potential candidate countries, and the UK. The report provides a description and assessment of the main measures implemented, an initial estimate of the overall expenditure on crisis measures as well as an analysis of the demographic, economic and social impact of the pandemic in the 35 countries covered. It reveals an overall rapid reaction through the introduction of (mostly) temporary measures - primarily relaxing eligibility conditions, increasing benefit levels and creating new ad hoc social and job protection schemes.

brookings.edu (08.09.2021)  As COVID-19 spread across the world, governments responded with an unprecedented increase in social assistance measures. Policymakers had to shift their focus to urban areas, particularly slums, whose residents were hit the hardest by the pandemic and its economic impact. Social safety nets, traditionally targeting chronic poverty in rural areas, had to be reinvented overnight: The new objective was to prevent informal workers affected by lockdowns from falling back into poverty. Exciting innovations in the design and delivery of social transfers followed, with emerging lessons informing us, as the world continues battling the pandemic.

bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com (27.08.2021) Cash transfer program during pandemics provide a social protection mechanism to improve the health of the most vulnerable households. This article analysis the impact of cash transfers on household demand for health care during Covid-19.