Delhi, Mumbai Police face massive cyberattacks from Pakistan-based hackers on G20 Summit eve

During the ongoing G20 Summit 2023, both the websites of the Delhi Police and Mumbai Police experienced technical issues and temporarily became inaccessible due to cybersecurity threats.

Fortunately, the Delhi Police website was restored after a brief 10-minute disruption. Users trying to access these websites were met with an error message stating, “This service isn’t available.”

According to information from the Threat Intelligence platform, Falcon Feed, the responsibility for this cyber incident has been claimed by a group known as “Team Insane PK.”

Notably, this group is recognized as a religious hacktivist organisation based out of Pakistan that has had significant activity in targeting the Indian cyberspace and businesses since February 2 of this year. Their primary focus appears to be on Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks and defacement attacks.

Falcon Feed told the press that Team Insane PK has been actively carrying out DDoS attacks, a method aimed at overwhelming online systems and websites by flooding them with an excessive volume of traffic. The outcome of such attacks is a temporary or even prolonged disruption of services, causing substantial inconvenience and turmoil for the targeted entities.

These cybersecurity threats encompass a range of tactics, including Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks and potential data breaches. Falcon Feed’s statement indicates that numerous hacktivist groups have been actively targeting India for several months.

The discussion surrounding the G20 Summit initially began with Indonesian groups like Hacktivist Indonesia Jambi Cyber Team, Ganonsec, FR3DENS OF SECURITY, Host Kill Crew, and others. Subsequently, Pakistan-backed groups, such as Team Insane PK, joined these activities, and it is anticipated that more groups may become involved in the near future.

Regarding the vulnerable websites, Falcon Feed has disclosed that government websites are particularly susceptible to these attacks. The stated intentions of these attackers range from disrupting services to potentially exposing sensitive data belonging to these sites.

Furthermore, the cybersecurity firm has identified the underlying motive behind these attacks as “political disagreements.” The statement points out that geopolitical events, such as the Russian-Ukraine War, and even political statements, can significantly impact the cyber landscape.

In light of these threats, the question arises: how can we protect ourselves from such attacks? Falcon Feed suggests that the government has already implemented a “Zero-trust” policy in response. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of ensuring that security protocols are correctly configured and that potential security vulnerabilities in government infrastructure are monitored and fortified. Vigilance in safeguarding government systems is of paramount importance to mitigate the risks posed by cyberattacks of this nature.