Kenya’s ICT Minister Acknowledges eCitizen Cyber-Attack, Ensures Data Security
ICT Cabinet Secretary (CS) Eliud Owalo has confessed that a cyberattack affected the government’s online services.
The assault was carried out by hackers identified as Anonymous Sudan. However, the CS stated that no data was lost during the attack and that the government was working nonstop to resolve the issue and secure the platform.
During an interview on Spice FM on Thursday morning, Owalo stated that cyber-attacks are not uncommon in this technological era, as they are pervasive globally.
“We must implement an elaborate framework for risk mitigation, for which we are already prepared.” “An attack has occurred, and we are addressing it,” said Owalo.
The CS stated that the government was not only implementing corrective measures to address the current situation but also measures to prevent future attacks.
Since four days ago, the majority of Kenyans have complained on social media platforms about the inaccessibility of government services through the portal.
They encounter an error whenever they attempt to register in, preventing them from accessing thousands of government services.
ALSO READ: Cyber Attack on ECitizen Portal Prompts Gov’t to Offer Visa-On-Arrival for Travelers
The CS stated that the perpetrators initially slowed the system’s performance, which was being addressed.
The Data Commission Office
While assuring Kenyans that their data is secure, the CS added that the government has anticipated such attacks, which is why the Office of the Data Commission has been made operational.
“They attempted to clog the system by inserting more than usual into the system…”Neither data access nor data loss has occurred,” he stated.
He also reassured Kenyans that the current cyberattack is not cause for alarm and urged them not to despair.
“There is no cause for alarm; we have sufficient capacity to address cyber security issues. “I don’t want to say we are perfect because we should also be truthful, but we are increasing our government’s capacity to combat cyber insecurity,” he said.
He added that the portal would be functioning normally by the end of the day.
Anonymous Sudan alleged on social media to be targeting more government digital services.
“Kenyan retards are switching their protection every few hours, from Cloudflare to Radware. How pitiful, they do not realize that nothing can stand in our way and that we will…accounts.ecitizen.go.ke regardless of the protection they provide. Their site has been inaccessible for three days and counting. We hope Kenyans now know who the Sudanese are, and the next event will be even worse, as we are preparing something very large,” the group said on Telegram.
Kenya’s ICT Minister Acknowledges eCitizen Cyber-Attack, Ensures Data Security