“Following the notification, the Authority activated its operational procedures, assembling a specialized team of cybersecurity experts,” according to the statement.”, stated the Authority.

According to Authority, their team immediately collaborated with Albanian Post technicians to conduct a deep-dive analysis, identify indicators of compromise (IOCs), and examine critical system logs. They rapidly isolated affected systems to contain the breach and secure the infrastructure against further impact.

The Authority advised the Albanian Post to temporarily halt specific services for a security analysis, which were subsequently, voluntarily taken offline.

“Currently, all public services have been restored and are functional for the public. We are evaluating the validity of recently leaked data. Preliminary forensic analysis suggests that the volume of exfiltrated data remains low”, it is further emphasized.

National Cyber Security Authority condemns any act that violates critical information infrastructures and remains committed to guaranteeing the integrity, confidentiality and availability of information technology systems in the Republic of Albania.

The Authority emphasized that it will update the public in a transparent manner on further developments and will publish a final report after the conclusion of the analysis. /j.p/p.s./

The Iranian state-sponsored hacker group posted images of emails from the parliamentary administration on their Telegram channel, claiming to have access to all recent communications and conversations of lawmakers.

“All communications and correspondence of corrupt members of the Parliament over recent months are in the hands of Homeland Justice. We are closer to you than you think. Did you really shelter those killers and child killers? We will make sure this shame remains with you forever,” the message said.

Another post by the group claimed access to the Assembly’s broader cyber infrastructure, describing it as “corrupt and sponsored by terrorism,” and warned that “soon the corrupt members of this parliament will be exposed for their hated actions.”

In response, Albania’s National Cybersecurity Authority (AKSK) confirmed that a cyberattack affecting the parliamentary email system had been reported.

“The National Cybersecurity Authority has established a task force to analyse the incident. Teams are on-site conducting technical assessments and taking the necessary measures to address the situation,” AKSK said in a statement.

The authority added that further information would be released once the technical evaluation is complete.

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According to AKSK’s preliminary assessment, the incident has disrupted the normal functioning of several services and applications managed by the municipality.

AKSK said that upon receiving the alert, in coordination with the State Police, it immediately activated its incident response protocols. AKSK announced that a task force composed of cybersecurity experts has been deployed to conduct an initial forensic analysis, identify breach entry points, contain the incident, and limit its spread to interconnected systems.

Initial recovery measures are underway to restore the functionality of affected systems. Preliminary recommendations have also been drafted to strengthen defenses and improve the security posture of the impacted infrastructure.

AKSK confirmed that its personnel are on-site and working closely with local authorities, the State Police, and the National Agency for Information Society (AKSHI) to analyze malware and ensure a swift and secure system recovery.

The authority strongly condemned any actions that compromise critical information infrastructure and reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of Albania’s IT systems.

Further updates will be provided in line with the technical progress of the investigation. AKSK urged citizens and media outlets to rely solely on its official communication channels for verified information.

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Presenting an annual report for 2023, Dhuli said that work has been launched to recover INSTAT’s systems.

“We assessed potential damages and followed the recommendations the state authorities of AKCESK and AKSH to fully recover and make entire INSTAT’s infrastructure stronger. Out of 40 infected computers, six of them were partially damaged. Census data were not affected,” Dhuli stated.

According to her, INSTAT will complete a database and make its systems fully operational by the end of this month.

Albania was hit by an unprovoked massive cyberattack in July 2022 aimed at paralyzing the country’s public services and hack data and electronic communications from the government systems.

In September, authorities announced that the systems were under attack again. On February 1, INSTAT reported that its systems were hit by a sophisticated cyberattack aimed that Institution’s technological infrastructure.

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Reporting at the Parliamentary Committee on Economy and Finance, Dhuli reiterated that the census data were not the target of this attack and they are saved in other dedicated safe systems.

“The census data are unaffected and no information has been hacked. The database has now become operational and available to the public,” she told lawmakers.

Dhuli explained that work is underway with the state authorities of AKCESK and AKSH to fully recover and make entire INSTAT’s infrastructure operational.

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INSTAT said in a press statement that the Institute responded swiftly and professionally to prevent and minimize the potential damages from the sophisticated attack by immediately shutting down the internet links and activating emergency protocols to protect data and statistical information.

“The initial examinations by the IT experts show that some of the INSTAT systems have been affected by the cyberattack. The immediate INSTAT response involves assistance by national cybersecurity experts, who are joining forces to conduct a thorough investigation into the attack. The investigation aims at determining main causes, the extension of damages and the solutions to effectively tackle future threats,” INSTAT said in its statement.

INSTAT assured the public that the recent census data were not the target of this attack, as they are saved in other dedicated safe systems.

“INSTAT is cooperating with authorities to identify the source and motives of the cyberattack, resume normal functioning and strengthen cybersecurity,” the statement reads.

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Tirana International Airport on Saturday notified all passengers that the airport’s operations continue normally without any delays, despite the current issues with the TIMS system.

“The flights operate as scheduled. However, passengers are pleased to report at the airport two hours and a half prior to the departure time,” TIA said in an announcement.

The State Police’s data storage and transfer systems were under a cyberattack, similar to the one against the e-Albania portal in July.

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In a press statement, the Ministry of Interior clarified that “last night, the State Police’s data storage and transfer systems were under a cyberattack, similar to the one against the e-Albania portal in July. Preliminary data show that the attack has been launched by the very same hand.”

The Ministry of Interior underlined that the system is currently inoperable and work is underway together with the partners to restore the system.

“Our experts, together with experts from our partner countries, are working intensively shortly after the attack was detected to primarily ensure that the data are not compromised and then neutralize this criminal offence. For safety reasons, our systems, including TIMS, have been temporarily shut down until danger is fully averted. The TIMS system will be restored very soon,” the Ministry of Interior said in its statement.

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