Cyber attack on ECP triggers security alert

A security alert was issued on Friday after a cyber attack on the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), Express News reported. The electoral watchdog has urged all employees to take the necessary precautions in the wake of the situation. All ECP staff were ordered not to open emails which could possibly lead to precious data being leaked. Notably, last month, Pakistan’s national security had once again been compromised due to negligence at the National Institutional Facilitation Technologies (NIFT). Cyber attackers managed to breach the security of the cheque clearing institution, gaining unauthorised access to data and forcing the banking system to resort to a manual system despite the prevalence of digital technology. Read NTSOC launched for cyber security Even after seven days since the cyberattack occurred last week, NIFT is still in the process of fully restoring its normal operations. Cheques are being cleared manually nationwide, and digital payment services remain halted. Last Friday (June 16), the attack forced the national institution to shut down both its data centres in Islamabad and Karachi. NIFT issued a statement claiming that there was no “significant compromise” of its data or systems. However, the statement suggests that some level of security breach did occur, although it was considered insignificant.