Tag Archive for: indian

Russian hackers hit Indian Health Ministry’s website: Cyber-security firm

/in


Cyber-security researchers from CloudSEK have claimed that a Russian hacker group targeted the Indian Health Ministry website and infiltrated its Health Management Information System (HMIS).

The pro-Russian hacker group called Phoenix allegedly compromised the HMIS Portal and had access to the data of employees and chief physicians of all the hospitals in the country, claimed the AI-driven cybersecurity company.

According to CloudSEK’s contextual AI digital risk platform XVigil, “the motive behind this target was the sanctions imposed against the Russian Federation where Indian authorities decided not to violate the sanctions as well as comply with the price ceiling for Russian oil approved by G7 countries”.

“This decision resulted in multiple polls on the telegram channel of the Russian Hacktivist Phoenix asking the followers for their votes,” it added.

According to security researchers, the Russian threat actors may sell exfiltrated license documents and personal identifiable information (PII) on cybercrime forums and conduct document fraud using PII and license documents.

Active since January 2022, the Russian hacktivist group Phoenix was observed using social engineering techniques to lure the victims in a phishing scam thereafter stealing the passwords and gaining access to its victims’ bank or e-payment accounts.

“The group has conducted a series of DDoS attacks against multiple entities in the past,” said the report.

Phoenix has also engaged in hardware hacking, unlocking lost or stolen iPhones and reselling them in Kiev and Kharkiv through a network of controlled outlets.

The Russian Hactivist group has earlier attacked hospitals based in Japan and the UK, along with a US-based healthcare organisation serving the US military, said the report.

Late last year, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi became the victim of a massive ransomware attack where Chinese involvement was suspected.

Sensitive data of at least 40 million patients, including political leaders and other VIPs, were potentially compromised in the hacking.

The attack was analysed by the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team…

Source…

My security reduced, mobile phones being  tapped, alleges Anam Ramanarayana Reddy- The New Indian Express

/in


By Express News Service

NELLORE: Once again YSRC MLA Anam Ramanarayana Reddy made serious remarks against the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government for reducing his security. Continuing his criticism of the ruling YSRC, Anam said, “A political uncertainty has prevailed in Venkatagiri Assembly constituency. People need to observe who are responsible for the present situation.”

Explaining the powers of a legislator, Anam said the local MLA was not being invited to local bodies meetings in the constituency, which is unfair. “I will continue as a legislator till the end of my term. The State government has reduced my security.

I have asked the officials to remove my security totally. I have faced a lot of struggles in the past four decades of my political life. I have been waiting for the decision of people. There are three groups in the ruling YSRC in Venkatagiri,” he observed. The Venkatagiri MLA alleged that two of his mobile phones were being tapped for the last two years.

Anam said he was forced to use WhatsApp and other apps to speak to his children. The MLA made it clear that though he is aware of phone tapping, he is not going to lodge any complaint against anyone. Commenting on the State politics, Anam underlined the need for a third front. People had given a thumping majority to Jagan in the last elections.

The three-and-a-half year’s rule of the YSRC has evoked a mixed responde from people. Intellectuals, political analysts and people need to think about how the regional parties will serve the State, he said.

Source…

An area of emerging concern to Indian security

/in


Going by the statistics, cyber warfare has turned out to be one of the serious threats to Indian security. It is in fact considered as the “next generation of threats”. Recent cyberattack on the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMs) is a case in point.  Reportedly, over 1.9 million cyberattacks were made targeting India’s health sector alone. India has always been among the top five targets of malicious activity on the Internet that ranges from virus, Trojan, malware, identity theft, hacking, cyber stalking, cyber squatting, spamming, email-bombing, email-spoofing, cyber defamation, web defacement, data diddling, web jacking, denial of service attack, key logging and Internet time theft. The threats we face range from individual criminal hackers to organised criminal groups, from terrorist networks to advanced nation states like China and Pakistan. Defending against these threats to our security, prosperity, and personal privacy requires networks that are secure, trustworthy, and resilient. Our digital infrastruc­ture, therefore, is a strategic national asset, and protecting it—while safeguarding privacy and civil liberties—is a national security priority.

The present concern relates to cyberspace turning into “a force multiplier for terrorist networks in India and abroad, driven by the sophisticated use and unlimited access to Internet and computer technology.” Taking advantage of the anonymous nature of the Internet, terrorists use cyberspace for communications, geographic mapping, recruitment, fund raising and, most importantly, intelligence gathering. With increasing vigilance on the traditional channels of communications (such as tracking of e-mails, mobile phones, etc), terrorists have now resorted to using new tactics, for example, not sending e-mails but saving them as drafts in an encrypted manner or even through blogs. Many organised terror groups pitched against India host websites and use fixed Internet sites to communicate with their partners. There have been known incidents in India where terrorists have resorted to several other innovative techniques, such as using bulletin boards and other websites that provide free uploading services,…

Source…

Hackers planted false files implicating Indian Jesuit Father Swamy who died in prison

/in


NEW DELHI (CNS)—Catholic activists and priests want the Indian government to “take full responsibility” for the custodial death of Jesuit Father Stan Swamy after findings by U.S.-based digital forensic experts that false evidence was planted on the priest’s computer.

In a recent report, Arsenal Consulting, a Massachusetts-based digital forensics firm, said the “digital evidence used to arrest senior human rights defender Father Swamy in the Bhima-Koregaon case was planted on his computer’s hard drive.”

The 84-year-old Jesuit, a rights activist based in eastern Jharkhand state, died in a hospital while imprisoned in Mumbai in July 2021 after being denied bail on medical grounds, despite suffering from multiple age-related ailments.

He was arrested Oct. 8, 2020, by India’s anti-terror National Investigation Agency and accused of being party to a conspiracy allegedly hatched by outlawed Maoist rebels to unleash mob violence at Bhima-Koregaon, in the western state of Maharashtra, Jan. 1, 2018.

Ucanews.com reported Arsenal said “the attacker responsible for compromising Father Swamy’s computer had extensive resources (including time), and it is obvious that the primary goals were surveillance and incriminating document delivery.”

Disclosing details of the findings, Jesuit Father Joseph Xavier said in a statement that the hackers “first attacked Father Swamy’s computer on Oct. 19, 2014, using a Remote Access Trojan (RAT) called Netwire.”

“The report (by Arsenal) shows examples of the hackers being able to read his passwords as he was typing them, as well as other documents and emails,” said Father Xavier, who is also a convener of the Father Stan Swamy Legacy Committee of the Jesuits.

The hacker also read as many as 24,000 files on Father Stan’s device and planted files between July 2017 and June 2019, Father Xavier said, quoting from the report.

“Over 50 files were created on Father Swamy’s hard drive, including incriminating documents that fabricated links between Father Stan and the Maoist insurgency. The final incriminating document was planted on Father Stan’s computer on June 5, 2019, a week…

Source…