--- title: "England-Based Football Association Boosts Security After Hacking Incident" id: "39684" type: "post" slug: "england-based-football-association-boosts-security-after-hacking-incident" published_at: "2017-09-12T22:04:39+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T16:15:53+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2017/09/12/england-based-football-association-boosts-security-after-hacking-incident/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2017/09/12/england-based-football-association-boosts-security-after-hacking-incident.md" excerpt: "After having been attacked by a hacking group, England’s Football Association is tightening up its security strategy ahead of the 2018 World Cup. Among the things the group is pushing for: requesting that players and staff members avoid open WiFi..." taxonomy_category: - "Governance" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "cybersecurity" - "Governance" - "IT security" - "Technology" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "C-Level" - "Executive Team" taxonomy_persona: - "Executive Leadership" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » England-Based Football Association Boosts Security After Hacking Incident England’s Football Association (FA), hit by a [series of recent data breaches (opens in a new tab)](http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/fancy-bears-hack-football-doping-fa-looking-into-a7906846.html) , is ramping up its defensive strategy to guard against hacking. The sport’s governing body in England was targeted by the anonymous hacking group Fancy Bear, which has also hit the World Anti-Doping Agency and individual athletes and [has been associated (opens in a new tab)](http://time.com/4600177/election-hack-russia-hillary-clinton-donald-trump/) with last year’s attack on the Democratic National Committee in the U.S. Last month, Fancy Bear leaked communications between FA and the international soccer body FIFA that discussed cases involving potential doping rule violations. “The Football Association is disappointed that strictly confidential information has been released into the public domain. The details of ongoing cases cannot be discussed or disclosed until due legal process has been completed,” FA said at the time, [according to The Independent (opens in a new tab)](http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news-and-comment/fancy-bears-hack-football-doping-fa-looking-into-a7906846.html) . The association has been pushing for stronger security standards internally and among athletes ahead of next year’s World Cup, which will take place in Russia, especially since that country has been linked with recent high-profile cyberattacks. Among other things, to help shore up security, FA has called on players, coaches, and staff members to avoid the use of open wireless networks, even at hotels, during tournaments next year, [according to the BBC (opens in a new tab)](http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/41230542) . In comments reported by *The New York Times*, [FIFA confirmed having communicated with FA (opens in a new tab)](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/11/sports/soccer/fifa-world-cup-cybersecurity.html?ribbon-ad-idx=4&rref=sports/soccer&_r=0) about last month’s incident. “We can confirm that the FA has sent a letter to FIFA related to the Fancy Bears attack,” a FIFA spokesman said. “In its reply, FIFA has informed the FA in such context that FIFA remains committed to preventing security attacks in general, and that with respect to the Fancy Bears attack in particular it is presently investigating the incident to ascertain whether FIFA’s infrastructure was compromised.” (Thomas Northcut/DigitalVision/Getty Images Plus) [Ernie Smith](https://associationsnow.com/author/ernie-smith/) Ernie Smith is a former senior editor for Associations Now. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/ernie-smith/) Tags: [#cybersecurity](https://associationsnow.com/tag/cybersecurity/) [#Governance](https://associationsnow.com/tag/governance/) [#IT security](https://associationsnow.com/tag/it-security/) [#Technology](https://associationsnow.com/tag/technology/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [VideoStrengthening the CEO & Board Partnership with Governance TechnologyMarch 17, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/03/17/strengthening-the-ceo-board-partnership-with-governance-technology/) - [PodcastAssociations NOW Presents: Leading Together-Strengthening the Board-CSO PartnershipDecember 18, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/12/18/associations-now-presents-leading-together-strengthening-the-board-cso-partnership/) - [VideoAssociation Governance Institute: Your Governance HeadquartersMarch 18, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/03/18/association-governance-institute-your-governance-headquarters/) - [PodcastSecuring Identity: What Associations Need to Know About Verifiable CredentialsJune 25, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/06/25/securing-identity-what-associations-need-to-know-about-verifiable-credentials/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2017%2F09%2F12%2Fengland-based-football-association-boosts-security-after-hacking-incident%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !