Massive data leak targets German officials including Chancellor Angela Merkel
Berlin, Jan 4: Private data stolen from hundreds of German politicians including Chancellor Angela Merkel have been published online, the government said Friday, in a stunning breach of cyber security.
The information, which comprised home addresses, mobile phone numbers, letters, invoices and copies of identity documents, was first released via Twitter in December but its spread gathered pace this week.
It was not immediately clear whether the officials were targeted by hackers or the victims of an internal leak of the data, some of which dates back to 2017.
"Personal data and documents belonging to hundreds of politicians and public figures were published on the internet," government spokeswoman Martina Fietz said.
"The government is taking this incident very seriously." Among those affected were members of the Bundestag lower house of parliament and the European Parliament as well as regional and local assemblies, she said.
Deputies from all parties represented in the Bundestag were targeted, as well as President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, an interior ministry spokesman said.
However Christian Lueth, parliamentary group speaker for the Alternative for Germany (AfD), later said that his party's deputies were not hit by the attack and the interior ministry later confirmed this.
Fietz said a preliminary investigation indicated that "no sensitive information or data" from Merkel's office had been leaked.
Berlin's political establishment nevertheless reacted with alarm.
"Whoever is behind this wants to damage faith in our democracy and its institutions," Justice Minister Katarina Barley said in a statement.
The far-left Linke's parliamentary group chief, Dietmar Bartsch, called it "an attack on democracy".
Beyond politicians, the leak also exposed the private data of celebrities and journalists, including chats and voicemail messages from spouses and children of those targeted.
The daily Bild and public broadcaster RBB first reported the leak. Bild said it was not clear when the data theft began but said it continued until the end of October.
"At first glance, it does not seem that politically sensitive material was included," RBB said.
"However the damage is likely to be massive given the volume of personal data published." The interior ministry spokesman said it was unclear who was behind the data dump, which derived both from social media and private "cloud" data.
A deputy from Merkel's Christian Democratic Union party, Patrick Sensburg, pointed the finger at right-wing extremists.
"I assume this was a hacker attack by people close to the AfD," he told the daily Handelsblatt.
Fietz said the amount of Merkel's data that was exposed was "not excessive" but warned that some of the documents and information published might have been faked.
Given the vast range of data hoovered up, IT experts said it seemed unlikely that it was taken from a single source.
Parliamentary group leaders were notified of the attack late Thursday and the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and the domestic intelligence service said they were investigating.
"According to our current information, government networks have not been targeted," BSI tweeted.
The Twitter account @_0rbit published the links every day last month, along the lines of an advent calendar with each link to new information hidden behind a "door".
The account, which calls itself G0d, was opened in mid-2017 and purportedly has more than 18,000 followers.
It described its activities as "security researching", "artist" and "satire and irony" and said it was based in Hamburg.
A link to Merkel's data showed two email addresses used by the chancellor, a fax number and letters apparently written by her and to her.
By midday Friday, Twitter had suspended the account.
Last year, the domestic intelligence service, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, said there had been repeated cyberattacks against MPs, the military and several embassies that were allegedly carried out by Russian internet espionage group "Snake".
Also known as "Turla" or "Uruburos", the group -- which targets state departments and embassies worldwide -- is believed to have links to Russian intelligence.
Last March, computer networks belonging to the German government came under sustained attack and data from foreign ministry staff was stolen.
At the time, Moscow denied that Russian hackers were involved.
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Riyan Parag likely to be fined 25 percent of match fees for vaping inside dressing room
New Delhi (PTI): Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag is set to be fined 25 per cent of his match fee for bringing the game into "disrepute" after being caught vaping on camera during the IPL game against Punjab Kings in Mullanpur.
Parag's actions during the Royals' chase on Tuesday night drew condemnation on social media.
PTI has learned that on field umpires Tanmay Srivastava and Nitin Menon had not reported the matter to match referee Amit Sharma right after the game. They only did that after seeing visual proof and Sharma found Parag guilty for a code of conduct breach as per the IPL guidelines.
The Level 1 offences carries 25 per cent deduction from match fees and one demerit point.
"He is set to be fined a portion of his match fees and a demerit point for a Level 1 offence," said an IPL source.
The Indian government had banned e-cigarettes back in 2019, prohibiting their production, sale and distribution. As per the law, the offender faces imprisonment up to one year and/or a Rs one lakh fine for a first time offence.
"Article 2.21 of IPL Code of Conduct is intended to cover all types of conduct that bring the game into disrepute and which is not specifically and adequately covered by the specific offences set out elsewhere in this Code of Conduct, including Article 2.20," the IPL Code of Conduct states.
"By way of example, Article 2.21 may (depending upon the seriousness and context of the breach) prohibit, without limitation, the following: (a) public acts of misconduct; (b) unruly public behaviour; and (c) inappropriate comments which are detrimental to the interests of the game.
"When assessing the seriousness of the offence, the context of the particular situation, and whether it was deliberate, reckless, negligent, avoidable and/or accidental, shall be considered.
"Further, the person lodging the Report shall determine where on the range of severity the conduct lays (with the range of severity starting at conduct of a minor nature (and hence a Level 1 Offence) up to conduct of an extremely serious nature (and hence a Level 4 Offence)."
Since it is a Level 1 offence there was no need for a hearing.
Parag, who has not had the best of times with the bat this IPL, was seen inhaling an e-cigarette, also known as vaping, in the dressing room during the live broadcast of their game against Punjab Kings. Royals won the game to end Kings' unbeaten run in the tournament.
This is not the first controversy to hit the Royals this season. Earlier this month, team manager Romi Bhinder was fined Rs one lakh for breaching PMOA protocol after being found using his phone in the dugout.
IPL and BCCI officials involved in the conduct of the IPL termed it as a careless act in the age of social media and prying TV cameras.
Royals next host Delhi Capitals at home on Friday night.
