NEW DELHI: Amid escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, a group of suspected hackers, named 'Pakistan Cyber Force' has claimed that they have gained access to sensitive data from the Indian Military Engineering Service and Manohar Parrikar Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis.
The Pakistan Cyber Force handle, now withheld in India, had posted a list of names, reportedly of Indian defence personnel, with the caption: "Hacked. Your security is illusion. MES data owned." The group claimed that it had accessed more than 10 GB of data of 1,600 users on the Manohar Parrikar Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis website.
Sources in the government said the claim suggests that the attackers might have accessed personal information related to defence personnel, including their login credentials.
In addition to the data breach, it has also been reported that the group attempted to deface the official website of Armoured Vehicle Nigam Limited, a PSU company under the Ministry of Defence.
The group had posted images of a webpage from Armoured Vehicle Nigam Limited. In the image, an Indian tank can be seen replaced by a Pakistani tank.
According to sources, the website of Armoured Vehicle Nigam Limited has been taken down temporarily, for a "thorough and deliberate audit," to assess the extent of the damage caused due to the hacking.
Sources said that cybersecurity experts, including those from Indian Cyber Security Coordination Committee (I4C) under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), are actively monitoring cyberspace to detect any additional cyberattacks, particularly from Pakistan.
This ongoing surveillance aims to quickly identify and mitigate any future risks posed by these cyber attackers, the sources said, adding that responding to the emerging situations, appropriate and necessary measures are being taken to bolster the security infrastructure, strengthen digital defences, and safeguard against further intrusion attempts.
These efforts are focused on enhancing the overall resilience of online platforms and ensuring that forces are better prepared to defend against future cyber threats, they noted.