Ukad hack: Anti-doping agency holding thousands of sports stars’ drug test details hit by cyber attack

Sign up to our free sport newsletter for all the latest news on everything from cycling to boxing Sign up to our free sport email for all the latest news Sign up to our free sport email for all the latest news SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The UK anti-doping agency, which holds thousands of sports stars’ drug test details and medical records, has been hit by a cyber attack. “My interest was piqued by the fact that our team wanted to get out in front of the story, especially in light of Fancy Bears from a few years ago.” In 2016, the anonymous cyber espionage group Fancy Bears leaked the World Anti-Doping Agency’s classified medical records and drug testing files of a number of athletes who had received therapeutic use exemptions, including the tennis player Serena Williams, cyclist Bradley Wiggins and athlete Mo Farah. They’re telling staff the bare bones.” Ukad is the British organisation charged with protecting a culture of clean sport, and is a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. But their most visible public role is in the testing of elite athletes, and Ukad perform “intelligence-led testing across more than 40 Olympic, Paralympic and professional sports”.