- Hackers stole the Uffizi’s photographic archive, but backups were restored
- Reports claim codes, passwords and cards were taken
- The museum denies claims and says upgrades were planned in advance
The Uffizi Galleries, one of the most popular museums in Italy, has confirmed that it suffered a cyber attack earlier in 2026, losing a treasure trove of sensitive data.
Located in Florence, the Uffizi Gallery hosts works of art from some of the world’s most famous artists, such as Botticelli, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and others.
In early February 2026, the museum was hit by unnamed hackers who “wiped the servers” and wiped out the entire photography department’s archive – however, the museum had the entire archive backed up, allowing everything that had been lost to be quickly restored.
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Replacing hardware and moving valuables
A report from Cyber news cites local media reporting that the attackers stole “codes, passwords, alarm systems, internal cards, entrances, exits and service routes”, as well as the location of surveillance cameras and sensors.
But the museum denied those claims, saying there was “no evidence whatsoever” that the crooks took any cards at all. It also stated that the location of the cameras can be easily seen by simply walking into the museum and looking up.
It is still in the process of replacing the hardware. However, it says police recommended the upgrade in 2024 when the cameras were analogue rather than digital.
The museum also moved some of its belongings to a vault at the Bank of Italy and closed parts of the palace a few days after the breach. This too was allegedly planned months in advance and has nothing to do with the incident.
Cyber news said the hackers reached out to the museum’s director via SMS and threatened to release the stolen files on the dark web unless a ransom was paid. We don’t know what the answer was, but so far nothing has been leaked.
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