Chandigarh: Billing accounts of thousands of electricity consumers in Haryana have been hacked in a cyber attack, a state discom official said on Wednesday.
"There was a cyber attack on March 21 on the Automatic Meter Reading System (AMR) through which the billing of about 4,000 Industrial consumers is being done. The said system was installed, operated and managed by Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) since 2011," said a spokesperson of the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVN).
He said that there was no loss of billing data as the backup is already available with the Nigam and the billing of these consumers is also not affected.
"There is no business loss and there is continuity in the business. Immediately after the attack, the complete system study was carried out by the concerned officers, cyber experts as well as other IT experts. The database was found encrypted and the backup of encrypted database was also taken for further retrieval," he said.
A FIR has been lodged by UHBVN officers.
"The Nigam had already taken steps much before to phase out the said system and to be replaced by latest, robust and technologically advanced system on cloud services which shall be operational by the end of May 2018. The billing of above 4,000 consumers has already started functioning normally," the spokesperson added.
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Raipur (PTI): Amid reports of shortage of commercial LPG cylinder in several parts of the country due to the US-Israel-Iran conflict, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Tuesday assured people that they need not worry about the availability of cooking gas in the state.
He asserted that adequate stock of LPG as well as petrol and diesel was available in the state.
Sai said in a statement that authorities have been directed to regularly monitor stock at gas agencies and keep a close watch on the supply chain. Necessary instructions were issued to officials in all districts to ensure a smooth supply of LPG.
The chief minister instructed officials to take strict action if any complaint of black marketing or hoarding of LPG cylinders is received.
Sai urged state residents not to pay attention to rumours and to book cooking gas cylinders as per their actual requirement.
The government was fully alert to ensure the availability of essential commodities to citizens, he emphasised.
Meanwhile, the Chhattisgarh Hotel and Restaurant Association has issued an advisory to hotels, restaurants, caterers and other food businesses across the state, urging them to maintain calm and avoid panic buying.
In the advisory, Taranjeet Singh Hora, president of the association, asked members to maintain coordination and immediately inform it about any major disruption in LPG supply.
He cautioned businesses against hoarding cylinders, saying such practices could worsen the situation for the entire hospitality sector.
The association advised hotels and restaurants to prioritise essential kitchen operations, core menu items and already committed banquet events.
Use electric cooking equipment wherever possible for emergency and staff kitchens such as induction cooktops, electric hot plates, electric rice cookers and kettles, the advisory stated.
