The website of a prominent private school in Noida was hacked and infiltrated by an unknown group identifying itself as “Muslim Hackers of Bangladesh” The incident came to light on the night of August 10, 2023, and the local police have said they are yet to receive a complaint about the alleged attack.
About the Hack
“We are Bangladeshi Muslim Hackers and never try to mess our cyberspace. We oppose oppression where we are, and we represent freedom, we are simple evolimion of the technological system when liberty is at risk expect us,” read the message on the school’s website. Another additional line in the message read, “When Liberty is at risk, expect us.”
The website showed the national flag of Bangladesh, and the hackers signed off the message with Joy Bangla and Bangladesh written after it, followed by multiple codenames.
This incident triggered panic in the school located in Noida Sector-30. Teachers, students, and parents are heavily concerned that important and relevant data related to them may get leaked since the website is under the control of hackers. The hackers have replaced the logo of the private school with that of the Bangladeshi National Flag.
Rise of Cyber-attacks in India
The incident has come weeks after cyber security group firm Group-IB’s report about a hacktivist group known as “Mysterious Team Bangladesh”, which has carried out several Distributed Denials of Service (DDOS) attacks since June 2022. The group, which is driven primarily by religious and political motives, has also attacked multiple sectors in India, the report said.
A Distributed Denial of Service Attack (DDOS) is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal traffic of a targeted network by flooding it with internet traffic. In simple terms, it means that the website will no longer be available to legitimate users.
This also comes after a month after a report By Check Point and an Israeli-American software company revealed a sharp increase in cyber-attacks targeting organisations worldwide, with Indian institutions suffering a disproportionately high number of attacks.
According to the report, between January and July this year, a single Indian organisation endured an average of 2146 cyber attacks per week. This number significantly surpasses the global average of 1239 attacks per organisation. The education and finance sector faced the highest number of attacks per week globally, said the report by Check Point.
Earlier in April, the website of the Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (UPRSTC) was hacked by foreign hackers, following which the online ticketing system was halted immediately and efforts were taken to restore it.
Need for Cyber Security
Such cyber-attacks raise questions about the country’s cybersecurity infrastructure and the need for robust measures to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive information. It is important for all educational institutions and other organisations to prioritize cyber security and take preventive measures to ensure the safety of their digital platforms.
This incident serves as a reminder for all institutions to strengthen their security protocols and stay vigilant against potential threats. Cyber attacks on power grids, water supply systems, transportation networks and other critical infrastructure can lead to catastrophic consequences. Cyber attacks also compromise national security by revealing and providing unauthorized access to sensitive and classified information.
Preventing and responding to cyber attacks is difficult as they are difficult and almost impossible to predict, and the reaction attempts to restore the damage caused by the attack are very scarce.
Solutions
Effective cybersecurity involves implementing strong passwords and access controls and also by regularly updating the software and security patches. The Firewalls of the operating system have to be strengthened. Most importantly, providing training and educating employees regarding awareness of malware and other malicious cyber tools is the need of the hour.
