The head of Indonesia’s state Cyber and Crypto agency (BSSSN), Hinsa Siburian, confirmed Monday that the National Data Center (PDN) of the Ministry of Communication and Information in Indonesia was disrupted by a ransomware attack on June 20, local media reported.
According to Siburian, the ransomware used is the kind of cyber attack that infects a server and encrypts all the data stored on it. The hackers are demanding $8 million (131.2 Rupiah) through the dark web, which the government is not currently willing to pay.
The joint forces of the Ministry of Communication and Information, the BSSSN, and local police are working to investigate the attack. The team is simultaneously trying to overcome the impact of the cyber attack and recover from the public service disruption caused by the ransomware.
Alfons Tanujaya, a Cyber Security observer, commented that the current cyber attack demonstrates Indonesia’s inadequate digital management. He criticized the government for not having any professionals in information technology or cyber security within its leadership and claimed that the institutions have fallen behind due to a lack of proper digitization processes (Kompas).
In response to the ransomware attack, the Indonesian government has temporarily transferred all activities related to immigration to the Amazon Web Service (AWS) as the system in PDN remains disrupted.
Cyber attacks on government entities have become more common globally. The UK recently confirmed a cybersecurity incident involving its Armed Forces payment network. Similarly, New Zealand’s parliament was targeted by a cyber attack, while the Netherlands experienced a cyber attack on its political parties during elections for the European Parliament.
For more details on the situation in Indonesia, you can access the full article here.