Some state sponsored actors have succeeded in encrypting critical files related to a computer network of the Dutch parliament. As per our sources, the lower house of Dutch Parliament, the Tweede Kamer was hit by ransomware attack which managed to encrypt some election and finance related documents of the parliament.
Note-Ransomware is a form of malware which creeps into the database and then encrypts files until a ransom is paid to the hacker.
The good news is that the IT staff of the parliament has succeeded in stopping the malware in an early stage. But sources from NLTimes report that the encrypted data was not backed up. Means, the authorities from the parliament must and should pay the hackers the said ransom in order to regain a hold on the encrypted data.
Late last night, Dutch TV station NOS obtained an internal Tweede Kamer email that stated that ransomware hit their database and encrypted files. The statement added that the data lost to the hackers was not backed up and so the latest development can turn into an annoying situation anytime soon.
After some preliminary inquiry made by NOS, it was revealed that a phishing campaign disguised in the form of an Internal Tweede Kamer email did the damage.
The parliamentarian authorities have asked Netherlands-based company named Fox-IT to investigate on this matter. The company which is known to solve and mitigates the most serious cyber attacks responded that the attack was a serious threat to the country’s modern economy and secularist ideologies. A detailed report is awaited!
Meanwhile, United States CIA has reacted to this news and warned that almost all countries in Europe are extremely vulnerable to cyber attacks. The warning added that some nations like Russia are extremely interested in disrupting the political landscape of European nations and so will launch such attacks on critical infrastructure to gain access to vital info.
